Parents Are Donating Their Girls to Blow Themselves Up in Nigeria

By Michael Brown, Op-ed Contributor Monday, August 07, 2017

Michael Brown holds a Ph.D. in Near Eastern Languages and Literatures from New York University and has served as a professor at a number of seminaries. He is the author of 25 books and hosts the nationally syndicated, daily talk radio show, the Line of Fire.

A Christian missionary who teaches dirt poor children in Nigeria sent me a link to a very disturbing story, telling me that this same story was being featured in every newspaper she saw today. It is a tale of unspeakable evil. Yet without this missionary writing to me, it is a story we rarely hear in the West. Are you ready for some stomach-churning reading?

The army is now appealing to Muslim parents not to "donate" their children to Boko Haram to be used as suicide bombers. That's right. Parents are giving their children to these Muslim terrorists to blow themselves up and murder other people. How can this be?

In the words of Brigadier General Sani Usman, "The Nigerian Army wishes to appeal to religious, traditional and community leaders, as well as all well-meaning Nigerians, especially in the North-East of our country, to help dissuade people from donating their daughters or wards to Boko Haram terrorists for indoctrination and suicide bombing missions."

The army intercepted some would-be suicide-bomber girls, from whom "it was discovered that most of these hapless minors were "donated" to the terrorist sect by their heartless and misguided parents and guardians, as part of their contribution to the perpetuation of the Boko Haram terrorists' dastardly acts against the Nigerian society and humanity.

"The acts of these parents and guardians are not only barbaric, but condemnable and unacceptable. Nigerians have a responsibility and obligation to collectively mould our children and wards.

"Consequently, members of the public are kindly requested to be more vigilant, security conscious and report any suspicious persons or those whose daughters or female wards are missing or have not been seen recently."

And then, the most disturbing words of all: "Boko Haram terrorists have so far used more than 145 girls in suicide bombing missions between January and July 2017" — although, the article notes, the figure could actually be higher.

This is unimaginable. One hundred and forty-five girls (if not more) have been used as suicide bombers in the first seven months of this year.

Why do we hardly hear about this in the West?

I just did a search for "female suicide bombers Nigeria" and the first links that came up were: 1) an article from Al Jazeera dated March 15, 2017; 2) an article from The Guardian dated December 9, 2016; 3) an article from the same date on CNN; 4) an article on BBC from January 23, 2017; 5) an article from the Independent on January 1, 2017.

So, there was only one article emanating from a USA-based news service, and all but one of the articles is more than 6 months old, with the most current being almost 5 months old. Yet the epidemic is continuing unabated.

Some of the girls used to detonate themselves had been kidnapped and had no idea what their mission was. They were simply strapped up in a vest and ordered to walk into a certain area — be it a military installation or a mosque. Others may have been radicalized so that they participated willingly, and it is reported that some boys have been used as well.

And lest you think some of this may be exaggerated, I've been getting reports of these atrocities from friends in Nigeria, while the article cited gives details of attack after attack.

What I learned for the first time today was that parents are actually donating their children for this cause, making the story all the more evil.

Perhaps if this was reported more in the West there would be more international outrage? Perhaps other nations would feel more pressure to help the Nigerian army to wipe out Boko Haram? At the least, it would bring an outpouring of prayer for God's merciful intervention.

So, I'm doing my part in getting the word out, still stunned by what I have read.

As for our friend in Nigeria, she teaches both Muslim and Christian children in an extremely impoverished area not far from Boko Haram territory. Along with the link to the article she sent me, her email consisted of this one line: "Satanic. Makes me want to hold my little Muslims even closer."

That really says it all. May God have mercy.

Dr. Michael Brown (www.askdrbrown.org) is the host of the nationally syndicated Line of Fire radio program. His latest book is Saving a Sick America: A Prescription for Moral and Cultural Transformation. Connect with him on Facebook or Twitter.