OCHA/Yasmina Guerda A camp for conflict-affected people in Rann, north-east Nigeria.
The United Nations welcomed on Friday as an “important milestone” the release in Nigeria of 833 children by the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF); a group formed in 2013 to protect communities and support the country’s security forces against Boko Haram extremists.
“This is an important development for boys and girls of north-east Nigeria whose lives have been deeply affected by violence and insecurity,” said the UN Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba. “I also want to highlight that today’s release of children is the result of months of productive work and collaboration between the CJTF and the United Nations… We expect more children to be separated from the CJTF soon.”
For over nine years, Nigeria’s north-east has been in the grip of a brutal conflict between various non-state armed groups, including Boko Haram, and the Nigerian military. This has resulted in the recruitment of thousands of children by the various militias.
This release by the CJTF comes after it was named in the UN Secretary-General’s Annual Report for Children and Armed Conflict and an action plan was subsequently developed and signed in September 2017. In the agreement, the group committed to ending and preventing the recruitment of children and agreed to release all children from their ranks.
The United Nations has supported this process by providing training and awareness raising sessions to members of the CJTF and communities.
This is the first formal release since the agreement, but the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) estimates that another 600 boys and girls remain within the ranks of the CJTF in the city of Maiduguri, and many more youngsters remain in other armed groups, either in combat or support roles.
“The release of these children from CJTF shows commitment to implement the provisions of the Action Plan and to uphold international humanitarian law, human rights laws as well as other regional and national legislations, protecting children’s rights,” said Pernille Ironside, Deputy Representative of UNICEF in Nigeria.
Special Representative Gamba noted that the Nigerian authorities will be providing reintegration services to all children released today, with support from UNICEF and other child protection organizations.
“We have an opportunity to help these children heal and rebuild their lives,” said the Special Representative. “I call on all those who can support this process to work with us to ensure they have access to the best possible services.”
Since 2017, UNICEF and its partners have supported the Nigeria authorities in its efforts to reintegrate more than 8,700 children released by parties to the conflict. This work has involved tracing their families, getting them home and offering psychological and economic support, an education, vocational trainings, as well as helping them overcome the stigma they face from their association with armed groups.
While today’s release of children is an “important milestone” for the protection of children in Nigeria, Ms. Gamba regretted that children in the country’s north-east continue to be subjected to grave violations.
During the first six months of 2018 alone, 37 children, the majority of whom were girls, were used as ‘human bombs’ to harm civilians. During the same period, 349 children were killed or maimed, and another 140 children were abducted.
The Special Representative also expressed concern over children detained by the authorities for their – or their parents’ – alleged association with non-state armed groups. Calling on the Nigerian Government to consider these children primarily as victims, she appealed for a handover of these children to civilian care “without delay”.
Y DO THE EXTREMISTS ATTACK CHRISTIANS ?
THERE IS NO JUSTIFICATION ! AND THERE CANNOT BE ! TERROR KS TERROR ! dindooohindoo
BUT THERE IS A RATIONALISATION OF THE REASON ! THE EXTREMISTS ACT WITHIN THE SCOPE OF THEIR REASON – WHICH IS THEIR SENSE PERCEPTION AND WHICH EXTENDS ONLY UPTO THE QURAN AND POSITS OF ISLAMIC THEOLOGIANS (WHICH IS FAIR AS THE THEOLOGIANS HAVE A WIDER AMBIT OF SENSE PERCEPTION)
IF A MUSLIM SAYS THAT HE ACCEPTS CHRISTIAN-ET AS A RELIGION – THEN HE IS EITHER A FOOL OR A COWARD OR BOTH (AS PER ISLAMIC THEOLOGIANS) !
IN ISLAM THE CHRISTIAN-ET OF PAUL AND THE NT IS A FRAUD AND FALSITY – PERIOD ! There can be NO DOUBT ABOUT THAT (AGAIN – AS PER ISLAMIC THEOLOGIANS) !
THE PUNISHMENT FOR HERESY AND BLASPHEMY IS DEATH AS PER TORAH, TALMUD AND OT !
IT IS THAT ELEMENTARY ! BUT IT IS AGAINST ALL NORMS OF HUMAN RIGHTS
AND THIS IS THE PROOF OF WHAT ISLAMIC SCRIPTURES THINK OF CHRIST-IAN-ET ! ANY MUSLIM WHO DENIES IT – IS ON SHEESHA !
THIS IS WHAT IT STATES – IT CAN BE DEBATED – BUT THIS IS WHAT IT SAYS ! THE QURAN AND THE BARNABUS BIBLE SEALS THE TRUTH OF JESUS – FROM BIRTH TO RESURRECTION AND RETURN ! HAVING SAID THAT – CHRISTIAN-ET HAD DONE A LOT OF GOOD IN THE WORLD – BUT THAT DOES NOT DILUTE THE FACT THAT IT IS THE CREATIVE FICTION OF 1 MAN – PAUL (THIS BEING THE POSIT OF ISLAMIC THEOLOGIANS).dindooohindoo
CASE 1 – JESUS IS NOT GOD AND NO DEATH AND RESURRECTION
The Quran says in Surah 61:14
O ye who believe! Be Allah’s helpers, even as Jesus son of Mary said unto the disciples: Who are my helpers for Allah ? They said: We are Allah’s helpers.And a party of the Children of Israel believed, while a party disbelieved. Then We strengthened those who believed against their foe, and they became the uppermost. So we strengthened those who believed from the two tribes of Bani Israel over their enemies, those who disbelieved in Muhammad, peace be upon him, for what he came to attest to them, that is that Jesus is the slave of Allah and his Messenger, and to expose the lies of those who say that he is God, and those who say that he is the son of Allah the Most High, so they (the believing tribe) have been made victorious over the disbelieving enemies.
CASE 2 – PAUL IS A FRAUD
Shaykhul-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah:
This is just like what Paul fabricated when he entered into the Religion of Christianity in order to corrupt the Religion of the Christians.
Ash-Shahratain (d. 1153), a theologian of the Asharite school, echoes the above words of Ibn Taymiyyah by stating that:
Paul, however, disordered his affair, made himself (Peter’s) partner, altered the basis of his knowledge, and mixed it with the argument of the philosophers and the (evil) suggestion of his heart.
CASE 3 – PAUL IS NEITHER A PROPHET NOR A SEER NOR A MESSENGER
Imam Muslim and Imam Bukhari,Volume 4, Book 55, Number 651:
Narrated Abu Huraira: I heard Allah’s Apostle saying, “I am the nearest of all the people to the son of Mary, and all the prophets are paternal brothers , and there has been no prophet between me and him (i.e. Jesus).”
The word used is “nearest” of all … – which would exclude the 12 Apostles as well as Mary. Then it says “… no prophets….”
WONDER BAR !