Following SaharaReporter's exclusive June 20 report on a vicious Boko Haram attack on a joint police/military convoy near Maiduguri which embarrassed and caught dozens of policemen off guard, the leadership of the militant group has released a video through journalist Ahmad Salkida of Salkida.com.
In the video, in which Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau speaks for about 10 minutes, the group reveals that several female officers were abducted during the raid. His speech is then followed by scenes of the fierce attack, which took place on the Maiduguri-Damboa road.
In the 17 minutes and 25 seconds video, graphic contents of one of the terror victims are shown, as well as images of another set of victims perhaps about to be beheaded, in scenes similar to previous Boko Haram propaganda videos.
The footage shows only still images of the abducted women, but no video. Shekau, holding a chewing stick (miswak) instead of a microphone, takes credit for the attack and in his usual manner, chides Nigerian security officials for lying that Boko Haram has been defeated.
“I want to tell you that we are the one that attacked the convoy, here are the vehicles for all to witness, we are the ones that abducted the female police officers, in fact, they are senior female police officers,” he brags. “What we did is nothing when compared to our women, children, and friends that have been wiped out or arrested for many years by the Nigerian government. We only abducted them to serve as slaves to us.”
The elusive terror leader gives a grim warning to moderate Islamic clerics, telling them to repent as in his words there is no way Christians should converge in mosques and Muslims in churches and work together. He is referring to ongoing cooperation between Muslims and Christians, who, recognizing that Boko Haram often does not discriminate in attacking them, are in many places helping each other.
But Shekau challenges their mutual assistance as human beings. “No prophet has ever practiced this,” he asserts.
He also declares that the women his group abducted are fewer than 10 in number, and referred to them as “slaves”.