Nigeria paid Boko Haram ransom for kidnapped pupils: intel sources

The Nigerian government paid Boko Haram militants a "huge" ransom of millions of dollars to free up to 230 children and staff the jihadists abducted from a Catholic school in November, intelligence sources told AFP. Two Boko Haram commanders were also freed as part of the deal, which goes against the country's own law banning payments to kidnappers. The money was flown on a helicopter to Boko Haram's Gwoza stronghold in northeastern Borno state on the border with Cameroon and delivered to Ali Ngulde, a militant commander in the area, three sources told AFP. Due to the lack of communications cover in the remote area, Ngulde had to cross into Cameroon to confirm delivery of the ransom before the first group of 100 children were released. The decision to pay the jihadists, who sparked worldwide protests after they kidnapped 276 mostly Christian girls in Chibok in 2014, is also likely to irritate the US and President Donald Trump, who has cast himself as a defender of the country's Christians. Nigerian government officials deny any ransom was paid to the armed gang that snatched close to 300Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times