The abductors of 13 teenage female farmers in Borno State are demanding a ransom of N10 million, according to family members. The girls were seized on Saturday by fighters linked to the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP). A relative of one of the abductees told the newspaper that the kidnappers made contact after one of the young women was released. He told Daily Trust that she did not escape on her own, saying, You know, its not that the girl escaped on her own. The abductors deliberately released her after realizing that she was a breast-feeding mother. He added that the terrorists took the womans phone but handed her a SIM card before allowing her to go. And, before she left, one of the abductors confiscated her phone and gave her a new SIM card, instructing her to insert it in a phone when she arrived home, he said. According to the relative, the kidnappers called immediately after the SIM card was inserted. Immediately the SIM was inserted, the phone call came in, and the abductors demanded a ransom of N10 million for their release, he said. The demand has left the small farming community in distress. He lamented, We are a poor farming community scrambling for what to eat. Where can we get such an amount of money to secure the release of these girls? He appealed to government authorities and wealthy individuals to intervene and help rescue the young farmers, who he said are suffering in captivity.
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