‘An Unspeakable Act of Violence’

What began as a Tuesday evening service at Christ Apostolic Church in Eruku, Kwara State, turned into a live-streamed kidnapping that dragged 38 worshippers into the forest and left three people dead. Nearly 40 days after the bandit attack, Pelumi Salako visits Eruku to speak with survivors.

In 2011, a Boko Haram bombing at the United Nations House in Abuja claimed the lives of 26 people. The incident changed Nigeria’s capital city and the lives of its residents forever.

Boko Haram terrorism fits into a longer pattern of insurgency in Borno. Civilians survive through collective resistance, negotiation and uneasy compliance, and ‘peace’ in wartime is often shaped by tragic trade-offs.

Aisha, Juliana and Hauwa escaped Boko Haram captivity, but their freedom has taken longer to arrive.