UN okays force to battle Boko Haram, 150 schools shut in Cameroon , 10,000 displaced

The United Nations Security Council yesterday demanded that Boko Haram “immediately and unequivocally cease all hostilities and all abuses of human rights and violations”.

In a statement by the President of the Council, the UN accused Boko Haram of carrying out kidnappings, killings, hostage-taking, pillaging, rape, sexual slavery and recruitment of child soldiers since it launched its campaign in 2009.

It urged African countries to step up plans for a multinational force to fight Boko Haram—in the world body’s  first overall response to the threat posed by the insurgents.

The council issued a 13-point statement strongly condemning attacks by Boko Haram, in particular those involving children used as suicide bombers, and demanded an end to the violence.

On the eve of a key meeting in Niger of regional leaders, the 15-member council urged Nigeria’s neighbours to advance planning for the deployment of a multinational task force to drive out Boko Haram.

Chad is set to contribute a sizeable contingent to the force along with Cameroon, Niger, Nigeria and Benin. The multinational force has been under discussion since last year, but divisions over the scale and scope of its operations have slowed down the deployment.

The statement from the council came as Boko Haram fighters seized scores of hostages in a raid in neighboring Cameroon on Sunday.

The council expressed “deep concern that the activities of Boko Haram are undermining the peace and stability of the west and central African region.”

The statement was the first adopted by the council on the threat posed by Boko Haram, which is on the UN terrorists list. Previous statements focused on condemning specific attacks.

Ghanaian President Dramani Mahama also favours the deployment of a regional force to battle the sect. In an interview with a German radio station, the Ghannian leader said he would press for support from the African Union during its Summit next week.

As a result of Boko Haram’s attacks, more than 10,000 panic-stricken Cameroonians are fleeing border regions with Borno state for safer locations, government officials said yesterday.

Boko Haram has, in the past month, raided at least two dozen villages and towns in northern Cameroon. The group also kidnapped dozens of people during an attack on Mabass village on Sunday.

The insurgents are looting food and livestock, and a humanitarian and food crisis looms, Cameroon’s Minister of Territorial Administration and Decentralisation Rene Emmanuel Sadi, said yesterday.

Students and teachers are among those who have fled their homes. More than 10 schools were deserted after attacks Sunday, adding to the about 140 schools that have shut their doors because of the insurgency bleeding over into Cameroon, said Cameroon’s Minister of Education Monouna Fotso. The government is trying to accommodate the affected students, Fotso said.

There is a moral obligation for safer schools to admit the children despite limited resources and space, said Bernadette Appi, a teacher at a primary school in Maroua, where some children have been moved.

Boko Haram attacked Mabass village, in the Far North region of Cameroon, early Sunday and staged its largest kidnapping yet in Cameroon, according to the government. The military said up to 60 people were kidnapped, though about 30 eventually escaped.

Chadian troops began arriving in Cameroon on Sunday to support Cameroon’s army in the fight against the militants.

The Boko Haram insurgency has killed thousands and driven 1.6 million people from their homes, including across borders into Cameroon, Niger and Chad.

Also at the Hague, Netherland, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court condemned the escalation in “appalling levels” of violence in Nigeria’s northeastern Islamic uprising and warns she will prosecute members of any party to the conflict most responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

A statement yesterday from Fatou Bensouda said her office is continuing to investigate allegations Boko Haram extremists are killing large numbers of civilians, using girls and boys to participate in the conflict and forcing massive numbers of people from their homes.

She also warns the government of Nigeria of its obligation to prosecute crimes that “deeply shock the conscience of humanity.”