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Boko Haram was not concerned, he added, however reasonably the boys have been kidnapped by bandits masquerading because the Islamist terrorist group.
CNN has not been capable of independently confirm this.
Some of the kidnapped youngsters had addressed the Nigerian authorities in a video launched earlier on Thursday, which bore the emblem of Boko Haram.
In the video, a boy in a white shirt seems to be coaxed by somebody off digicam into making the calls for on behalf of the captors. He asks the Nigerian authorities to shut down faculties that educate “western education” and says authorities troops despatched to search out the boys ought to retreat.
The video exhibits dozens of kids underneath a tree, who seem drained. The voice within the video claims to be Abubakar Shekau, a frontrunner of one among Boko Haram’s factions.
Masari confirmed to CNN on Thursday that the youngsters within the video are a few of the pupils who have been kidnapped. However he disputed the voice claiming to be Shekau, and stated as a substitute that “local bandits” have been “mimicking” his speech.
When talking with CNN’s Becky Anderson on Wednesday, Masari didn’t dismiss the message completely however cautioned that “more concrete evidence” was wanted earlier than it could possibly be confirmed that Boko Haram was concerned.
While kidnapping for ransom by felony components in Katsina state have seen a disturbing improve, an abduction of this scale is unparalleled. It remembers the brutal kidnapping of 276 women from Chibok in 2014 by Shekau’s faction. More than 100 of these women by no means returned dwelling.
In 2018, a breakaway faction of Boko Haram often called ISWAP kidnapped greater than 100 women in Dapchi. All however one was launched weeks later, after negotiations.
Obiageli Ezekwesili, a co-founder of the #BringBackOurGirls motion and former schooling minister in Nigeria, stated she was “surprised” the federal government had allowed one other such kidnapping to happen.
CNN’s Stephanie Busari and David McKenzie contributed to this report.
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