15 Nigerian women, children escape from Boko Haram captivity

By CHINEDU ASADU
Associated Press

LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — Six women and nine children abducted by Nigeria’s Boko Haram extremist rebels in the country’s troubled northeast have escaped after months in captivity. The 15 former hostages have met with Borno Governor Babagana Zulum in the state’s capital, Maiduguri. The governor said he is hoping for “absolute peace” that would bring an end to the 10-year-old extremist insurgency in which thousands have died and many others kidnapped. The 15 women and children were abducted in two separate incidents in October 2020 and May this year when the extremists attacked their villages in Borno and Adamawa states, both of which have been badly affected by the extremist violence.