One would think that the rescue of 80 children from Boko Haram would make a good news story, even a good-news story. But this is the first I have heard of their rescue, apparently in November, and, I cannot even find any reference to it on the internet. I know it's very frustrating getting news out of central Africa, but that just seems ridiculous to me.
About 80 children rescued from a Boko Haram camp in Cameroon cannot remember their own names or origins, according to an aid official who visited them.
The children - aged between 5 and 18 - did not speak English, French or any local languages, says Christopher Fomunyoh, a director for the US-based National Democratic Institute (NDI).
The children were found at a camp in northern Cameroon in November.
Nigeria-based Boko Haram militants have extended their campaign into Cameroon.
The militants are fighting to establish an Islamic caliphate in north-eastern Nigeria.
They control several towns and villages in the region and recently pledged allegiance to Islamic State (IS) militants, who have seized large areas of Syria and Iraq.
'Lost touch'
The children were rescued in Cameroon after security forces - acting on a tip-off - raided what was thought to have been a Koranic school.
Mr Fomunyoh told the BBC's Randy Joe Sa'ah in Yaounde that he had visited an orphanage that was helping rehabilitate the children.
He said the children had spent so long with their captors, being indoctrinated in jihadist ideology, that they had lost track of who they were.
"They've lost touch with their parents," he said. "They've lost touch with people in their villages, they're not able to articulate, to help trace their relationships, they can't even tell you what their names are."
What a horrible feeling it must be to have no idea who you are or where you are from. It's like waking up with amnesia. Please pray for these children and those who are tasked with finding their families.
Meanwhile, a suspected Boko Haram attack on Tuesday killed at least six people at a marketplace in the northern Nigerian town of Maiduguri.
The suicide bombing was reportedly carried out by a middle-aged woman.
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| Cameroon Army |
The children - aged between 5 and 18 - did not speak English, French or any local languages, says Christopher Fomunyoh, a director for the US-based National Democratic Institute (NDI).
The children were found at a camp in northern Cameroon in November.
Nigeria-based Boko Haram militants have extended their campaign into Cameroon.
The militants are fighting to establish an Islamic caliphate in north-eastern Nigeria.
They control several towns and villages in the region and recently pledged allegiance to Islamic State (IS) militants, who have seized large areas of Syria and Iraq.
'Lost touch'
The children were rescued in Cameroon after security forces - acting on a tip-off - raided what was thought to have been a Koranic school.
Mr Fomunyoh told the BBC's Randy Joe Sa'ah in Yaounde that he had visited an orphanage that was helping rehabilitate the children.
He said the children had spent so long with their captors, being indoctrinated in jihadist ideology, that they had lost track of who they were.
"They've lost touch with their parents," he said. "They've lost touch with people in their villages, they're not able to articulate, to help trace their relationships, they can't even tell you what their names are."
What a horrible feeling it must be to have no idea who you are or where you are from. It's like waking up with amnesia. Please pray for these children and those who are tasked with finding their families.
Meanwhile, a suspected Boko Haram attack on Tuesday killed at least six people at a marketplace in the northern Nigerian town of Maiduguri.
The suicide bombing was reportedly carried out by a middle-aged woman.
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