- A young widow named Nanbam cried out for help after terrorists who killed her husband in an attack in Plateau State in August began threatening her and her children’s lives.
- She said the attackers forced her to marry their leader and convert to Islam, warning that they would kill her family if she refused.
A young widow named Nanbam has publicly asked for help after receiving death threats from the terrorists who killed her husband. Nanbam’s husband was one of 40 people killed in an attack in Mushere community in Bokos Local Government Area of Plateau State in August.
Nambam, a mother of three, told the global NGO Equipping the Persecuted her ordeal and said her killers forced her to marry one of their leaders.
She described the brutal attack that led to her husband’s murder: “My husband was killed along with 39 other people when bandits invaded our village in August. They surrounded the village and killed our people mercilessly. In the case of my husband, they cut open his body, took out his heart and threw him into a pond,”.
She revealed that the terrorists called her the day they murdered her husband. “In fact, the day they killed my husband, they called me using his phone number and said their leader wanted to marry me. I was shocked by what they said after they killed him.” Nanbam rejected the request: “I thought they were joking and I told them that over my body I would marry the man who killed my husband and the father of my children,”.
The threats are relentless. She said, “They called me every day from a different number and threatened that if I still refused to marry their boss and convert to Islam, they would kill me and my children because I was still a young woman.”
Even though she moved to Mangu’s hometown and even changed her SIM card, the calls were restored. A recent phone call shocked her with a direct threat: “I was surprised when I received a call on my mobile phone last week and the person said they knew where I was and if I remained stubborn and refused to marry their leader, they would come to the village and kill not only me but also my children and other family members,”.
Nanbam reported the matter to the police, but they told her they could not trace the numbers. She sighed: “The police even asked me to bring money for them to trace the number, but I told them I had no money and they lost interest in the case. “ She concluded, “I don’t know what to do now or where to turn for help.”
