Niger Begins Trial Of 1000 Boko Haram Members

Niger has begun the trials behind closed doors of about 1,000
suspected fighters from the Boko Haram jihadist movement, officials said Friday.
Chief prosecutor Chaibou Samna told AFP that the trials, on charges of terrorist links, had begun on March 2.
Those facing trial are from several countries including Niger and Mali, Samna said, as well as neighbouring Nigeria where Boko Haram’s deadly insurgency began in 2009 before spreading abroad.
Some of the suspects were “captured during combat” in southern Niger across the border from Boko Haram’s stronghold in Nigeria, a security source said.
Samna said the trials will last several months and mostly arise from offences entailing “not more than 10 years in prison”.
Source Punch Newspaper.