Reformed Boko Haram fighters get 2nd chance
Nigeria established a camp to rehabilitate and reintegrate Islamist Boko Haram militants who are sorry for their actions, the military said.
|||Abuja - Nigeria has established a camp to rehabilitate and reintegrate Islamist Boko Haram militants who have surrendered and are sorry for their actions, the military said on Tuesday.
The camp “is geared towards rehabilitating and reintegrating the repentant and the surrendering Boko Haram members back into normal life,” it said in a statement.
The military did not give any details of the camp is or how it run, but said the repentant militants would be given vocational training so they can help contribute to the economy.
An estimated 20,000 people have been killed since Boko Haram began its campaign of violence in 2009 to carve out a hardline Islamic state in northeast Nigeria.
More than 2.6 million people have fled their homes since, but some of the internally displaced have begun returning.
Nigerian military authorities also appealed to those still carrying arms to repent, after recently announcing the capture of dozens of jihadist militants.
The statement said that troops will continue their offensive against insurgents in the northeast, and warned reluctant Boko Haram members of “imminent calamity”.
AFP