The Boko Haram, a terrorist organization based near northeast Nigeria, raided a Nigerian village on Feb. 16, killing more than 100 villagers.
According to CNN, the gunmen arrived in the village of Izghe in Borno State, Nigeria “riding in trucks and on several motorcycles.” The group then gathered the men in the village square, where they hacked and shot them to death. The gunmen moved from door to door, searching for villagers that were hiding.
106 people died in the attack, and 105 of the victims were male. One victim was reportedly an elderly grandmother defending her grandson.
“I still can’t believe these kinds of events occur in the world- it’s too horrific to even think about,” said sophomore Marion Demailly.
The Boko Haram is a Nigerian militant terrorist group that claims to be seeking to establish a “pure” Islamic state. This means that they attempt to interfere with all matters they consider to be associated with what they call “westernization.”
The Boko Haram is known for holding Islamic extremist ideals, and their past acts include attacking Christians and government targets, bombing churches, victimizing schools and police stations, and kidnapping Western tourists.
“I think the Boko Haram were very wrong in killing all of those innocent people. I understand that they had their motives, but there are many, much less violent ways of reaching their goals,” said senior Iris Choi.
According to BBC News, resident Abubakar Usman told Reuters news agency that “All the dead bodies of the victims [were] still lying in the streets. We fled without burying them, fearing the terrorists were still lurking in the bushes.”
Senator Ali Ndume stated that around 100 of the militant terrorists attacked the village for approximately five hours, without any intervention from the Nigerian army. The army reportedly withdrew from the village after nine soldiers died in an ambush the week before.
“Their attacks on the villages of Nigeria probably caused a lot of pain and suffering for many families. Their ‘need for westernization’ claim don’t justify the fact that they’ve slaughtered so many innocent people,” said sophomore Kelly Liu.
This most recent attack on the village of Izghe is one of many that have occurred since the launch of the Boko Haram’s campaign in 2009. According to BBC News, several thousand Muslims and Christians have died as a result of the group’s violence.
More than 30 people were killed a week before this attack in the town of Konduga, which is also located in Borno State, Nigeria.
Borno State is currently under emergency rule, and many citizens continue to flee the area, fearing the terrorists’ next attack.
