Paris Summit Discusses Boko Haram Security Threat
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan is in Paris with other regional leaders to discuss how to deal with Boko Haram, the Islamist militant group that kidnapped more than 300 Nigerian school girls last month.
French President Francois Hollande is hosting the meeting which includes the presidents of Nigeria’s neighbors — Benin, Cameroon, Niger and Chad as well as representatives from the EU, Britain and other Western powers.
British Foreign Secretary William Hague says his country is ready to offer Nigeria additional assistance.
“The Nigerian security forces have not been well-structured for this kind of thing. This has been shown by the fact that the problem has been getting worse with Boko Haram. So, we can help with that. That is why we are offering to embed military advisers with the Nigerian headquarters,” Hague said.
Just hours before leaders gathered for the meeting, suspected Boko Haram militants launched an attack in a border region of neighboring Cameroon.
Local officials say militants raided a Chinese workers’ camp in the town of Waza, killing one person. A witness told VOA about 200 gunmen arrived in a convoy of vehicles and began shooting.
Investigators say 10 Chinese workers are missing and are believed to have been kidnapped by the suspected militants.
Boko Haram has said it wants to establish a strict Islamist state in northern Nigeria. The militant group has been blamed for thousands of deaths in bombing and shooting attacks over the past five years.
In April, Boko Haram abducted more than 300 schoolgirls in northern Nigeria. Some managed to escape but 276 are still missing.
Earlier this week, the militants released a video showing about 100 of the kidnapped girls, who were seen wearing hijabs and reciting Islamic prayers. Most of the girls who were kidnapped were Christians.
Source: VOA
