A 17-year-old Boko Haram escapee simply identified as Zara, has shared her painful experience in the hands of her abductors before her rescue, Vanguard reports.
According to reports, Zara, who also had a child for her terrorist husband, was rescued from the Sambisa forest following an aerial bombardment of the forest where Boko Haram insurgents have their camps and hideout.
She was rescued from Boko Haram’s captivity by the Nigerian army in 2015.
Speaking about her experience, the mother of one said, “They gave us a choice to be married, or to be a slave. I decided to marry,” Zara said.
The teenager spoke about the stigma and humiliation she received afterwards, stressing that her story was a sad tale of loss and stigmatization.
According to her, “People call me a Boko Haram wife. They call me a criminal. They didn’t want me near. They didn’t like me,” the 17-year-old added.
Zara’s uncle, Mohamed Umaru, also said, “The women in our family realized she was three months pregnant.
“In our family it happens that some of us are Christians and some are Muslims. She was a Christian before she was kidnapped, but the Boko Haram, who married her turned her into a Muslim.
“The decision on whether to keep or abort the pregnancy split our family in two, notwithstanding, the child, a boy, was born and Zara named him Usman after her terrorist husband.
Speaking further, Zara said she is afraid to leave her house for fear of being insulted.
“They didn’t like my child. When he fell sick nobody would look after him. Last week, my 9-month-old baby, Usman, died after a snake crawled to where we were sleeping and bit him.
“Some were happy that he died. They were happy the blood of Boko Haram had gone from the family,” Zara stated, noting that she was being faced with the harsh reality of being a Boko Haram bride, so much so that she wishes she was dead or back in the forest rather than the continuous stigma.
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