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Nigeria Releases 25 Children Cleared of Suspected Ties With Boko Haram

Reuters

   MAIDUGURI, NIGERIA, - The Nigerian army released 25 children Thursday
   after clearing them of suspected ties with armed Islamist groups in the
   country's restive northeast region, the United Nations Children's Fund
   (UNICEF) said.

   Nigeria has fought an insurgency by militant Islamist group Boko Haram
   in northeastern states that has killed more than 30,000 people over the
   past decade. It is not clear how many children in total have been drawn
   into armed groups, including Boko Haram, or how they have been
   recruited.

   UNICEF said 23 boys and two girls were released by the army and handed
   to authorities in Borno, the state worst affected by the insurgency.

   "These are children taken away from their families and communities,
   deprived of their childhood, education, health care, and of the chance
   to grow up in a safe and enabling environment," said UNICEF Nigeria
   Acting Representative Pernille Ironside.

   The children would be given access to medical support, education and
   vocational training, the agency said.

   Previous incidents

   The release comes against the backdrop of widely reported cases of
   young people being held captive in Nigeria in differing circumstances.

   In May, a regional militia allied with government forces freed almost
   900 children it had used in the war against Islamist insurgents.

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