Terrorism has unfortunately become a main topic of conversation and has been in news headlines recently. We have mostly heard about ISIS, however, there are other terrible forms of terrorism. For example, Boko Haram based in Nigeria.

Boko Haram has kidnapped young girls to use them as suicide bombers, in a CNN article a 16 year old girl recalls how girls were kidnapped including herself, “They came to pick us, they would ask, Who wants to be a suicide bomber? The girls would shout, me, me, me.” These words coming from young children, and teens mouths, is very horrific. Many of these girls want to become suicide bombers to take away their own personal pain.  Their every day life has little hope. For instance, many are hungry all the time and face sexual abuse.  A sixteen year old girl, whose name was changed to “Fati,” was married by force and raped.  She met many younger girls in Boko Haram strongholds, that have encountered the same horrors. Boko Haram has used at least 105 women and girls in suicide attacks since June 2014. Many Women and children had bombs hidden in baskets, or under their clothes.  They have killed many in markets and even schools.

To use these bombs, these women were taught to hold it under their armpit to keep its steady.  They were also taught methods of killing an “enemy” to make them die faster. In a New York Times article, it talks about a woman who was dressed as a man.  She bombed a village, while another woman bombed outside a mosque. UNICEF said that three quarters of the suicide bombers have been girls. Girls are mainly used for these suicide bombings, because the bombs can be hidden under their long veils, many of the devices use remotes.

Many of these young captives are feared in public, because they could be suicide bombers. It’s hard to help these young girls.  People in the villages do not know who they are, because they could very well be sent on a mission by Boko Haram. Boko Haram’s mission is disturbing.  They are using innocent and helpless children to complete horrific actions. It is just another terrible story in the War on Terror.