International Newspaper Claims Nigerian Military Aborting Pregnancies Related to Boko Haram Members
- The Nigerian military has been accused of terminating pregnancies without consent of the mothers
- According to Reuters, those whose pregnancies' were terminated were victims of Boko Haram and ISWAP
- Meanwhile, the Nigerian military has denied the report, describing it as false and concocted by Reuters
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In what can be described as a monumental scandal, an international news agency, Reuters, in a report claimed that the military is running a programme where forceful termination of pregnancies are being carried out.
According to the report, the termination is being carried out on female victims of Boko Haram/Islamic State in West African Province without their consent. The report stated that at least 10,000 pregnancies had been terminated this way.
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Going further, the news outlet said that the probe was based on the accounts of 33 victims, hospital staff, and security officials, as well as documents gathered.
The report read in part:
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“Since at least 2013, the Nigerian Army has run a secret, systematic, and illegal programme in the country’s northeast, terminating at least 10,000 pregnancies among women and girls, many of whom had been kidnapped and forced by Islamist militants, according to dozens of witness accounts and documentation reviewed by Reuters.
“The acts were mostly carried out without the person’s consent—and often without their prior knowledge, according to the witness accounts. The women and girls ranged in age from a few weeks to eight months pregnant, and some were as young as 12 years old, interviews and records showed.
“This investigation is based on interviews with 33 women and girls who say they underwent it while in the custody of the Nigerian Army. Only one person stated that she freely consented. Reporters also interviewed five civilian healthcare workers and nine security personnel involved in the programme, including soldiers and other government employees such as armed guards engaged in escorting pregnant women to the sites. In addition, Reuters reviewed copies of military documents and civilian hospital records describing or tallying thousands of the procedures.”
Military reacts.
Punch Newspaper reports that in a swift reaction, the military denied the allegations, accusing the news agency of ‘wickedness.’
According to the Defence Headquarters in a statement issued by the Director of Defence Information, Major General Jimmy Akpor, the news agency team behind the story is “cruel.”
The statement read in part.
“It took Reuters 13 solid years to craft an allegation of infanticide against the Nigerian military and the Nigerian nation. This shows that a news agency as “renowned” as Reuters is itself complicit in failing in its mandate to draw attention to and inform the public about supposed occurrences that violate not only the laws of armed conflict but also international humanitarian law.
“Let us analyse the period from July 2021 to November 2022. A total of 82,064 Boko Haram fighters and family members have surrendered to Operation Hadin Kai troops. Out of this number, 16,553 were active male fighters, 24,446 were women, and 41,065 were children. The Borno State Government is camping and accommodating them family-by-family, as per households, without having to separate the children from their parents.
“In the same camp are thousands of pregnant women and nursing mothers. A total of 262 babies were born within 4 months (94 in July, 98 in August, 60 in September, and 11 in October 2022). This figure comprises 150 female and 112 male children. The children were neither aborted nor yanked from their mothers.
“Hmmm! wickedness really runs in the veins of some people, and it surely runs deep in the veins of the Reuters team that concocted such evil for interrogation.”
Arewa group lauds COAS Farouq Yahaya, troops on war against banditry
Similarly, the Arewa Citizens Action for Good Governance has acknowledged the efforts of Lt. Gen. Yahaya in the fight against banditry and other forms of criminalities in the country.
In a statement signed by its president, Comrade Sani Mohammed, and sent to Legit.ng on Monday, November 14, the group said the zeal and commitment of the Nigerian Army are laudable and responsible for the numerous gains recorded so far in most parts of the country.
The group said since Yahaya assumed office, the operations of the Nigerian Army in addressing the security challenges in the country have been noteworthy.
Source: Legit.ng
