The growing number of missing children in Borno State has sparked widespread concern, following the emergence of a video showing a young boy confessing to receiving military training alongside dozens of other children in a forest.
Residents speaking on Sunday shared harrowing accounts of their missing loved ones, fearing the disappearances may be linked to insurgent recruitment efforts. This development coincides with renewed demands from the #BringBackOurGirls movement for the Nigerian government to release findings from the investigation into the 2014 Chibok schoolgirls’ abduction.
With 78 of the abducted girls still missing after more than a decade, the movement is calling for transparency and accountability in the ongoing search.
Shocking Video Sparks Alarm
A disturbing video, posted by Zagazola Makama on social media platform X, surfaced over the weekend, showing a boy, around 10 years old, demonstrating his knowledge of handling firearms. The footage, reportedly recorded on January 22, 2025, in a forest near Ajiri in Mafa Local Government Area of Borno State, shows the child confidently stripping and reassembling an AK-47 rifle.
“They are training us on weapons handling. Ali Shehu, Umar, Alhaji, and Malam Oro are the ones training us. We are at least 20 to 30. We are all young boys; some are bigger than me, while I am older than some of them,” the boy stated in the video.
His confession has intensified concerns that insurgents may be systematically abducting and training children to bolster their ranks.
Families Speak Out on Missing Children
Aisha Ali, a mother of two from Mafa, shared the heartbreaking story of her six-year-old son, Mustapha, who went missing three years ago.
“Around February 2022, my last-born, Mustapha, disappeared. He was just six years old. One evening, I left home for a short visit to a friend. By the time I returned, he was gone. We searched everywhere, but it was like he vanished into thin air. We have come to accept that he may never return,” she said.
Muhammad Mamman, a resident of Maiduguri, recounted a similar ordeal.
“My brother’s four-year-old daughter went missing early last year. We announced it on the radio, searched everywhere, but to this day, we have no answers,” he said.
A radio station announcer, who requested anonymity, confirmed the growing trend.
“In just two weeks, we receive at least one announcement about a missing child. This is alarming,” he said.
Authorities Downplay Insurgent Involvement
The Borno State Police Command acknowledged reports of missing children, estimating at least one case per week, but insisted that many were successfully resolved.
Command spokesperson Nahum Daso dismissed claims of recent child soldier recruitment, stating, “Some of these clips are old. We don’t have any current threats of children being used as foot soldiers. This used to happen in the past, but we have not recorded cases like this in over a decade.”
Similarly, Brigadier General Abdullahi Sabi Ishaq (retd.), the Special Adviser to the Governor on Security, suggested that the video’s content aligns more with the tactics of the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP) rather than Boko Haram.
“They target vulnerable almajiri children, provide food and shelter, and then train them for combat. Look at the boy in the video—he doesn’t appear malnourished. That is a sign of how they operate,” he explained.
When asked about government action, Ishaq emphasized the challenges of military intervention, citing concerns over collateral damage.
“If the Air Force bombs these locations, and it turns out children are there, there will be nationwide outrage. That’s why we rely on strategic military operations,” he added.
#BringBackOurGirls Demands Answers
The #BringBackOurGirls movement has renewed its call for the Nigerian government to disclose findings from the fact-finding committee on the Chibok abduction.
“The government has a duty to account for the rescue efforts of the remaining 78 missing Chibok schoolgirls. The continued secrecy surrounding the Sabo fact-finding report is unacceptable,” spokesperson Jeff Okoroafor stated in a press release on Sunday.
Of the 276 schoolgirls abducted from Chibok in April 2014, 141 have regained freedom, with some resuming their education. However, concerns remain that the remaining 78 may have been assimilated into terrorist enclaves.
The group has urged Nigerians to demand full public disclosure of the government’s findings on the Chibok tragedy.
