Mum’s plea for girl held by Islamists

THE mother of a Christian girl kidnapped by Islamic terrorists in Nigeria two years ago has appealed to Boris Johnson to help get her daughter home.

Leah Sharibu was abducted by Boko Haram, a branch of Islamic State, in 2018 and the only schoolgirl not released by militants several weeks later – because she refused to convert to Islam.

Her mother, Rebecca, will be the keynote speaker at a conference in London on Tuesday on Christian persecution internationally.

Mrs Sharibu will urge the Prime Minister to help bring her child home against the background of a resurgent IS in sub-saharan Africa.

Speaking to the Sunday Express, Mrs Sharibu said: “The past two years have been the most painful of my life. My beautiful Leah remains in captivity despite her friends being released.

“The most agonising part is that we do not know the kind of atrocities that have happened to her.

“I urge Boris Johnson to help bring back my girl. I am working hard to try to arrange a personal meeting with him, to share my urgency about Leah’s situation, and encourage him to increase pressure on [Nigerian president] Buhari to act.all I want is to hold my daughter in my arms again.”

Leah aged 14 at the time was among 110 girls kidnapped in February 2018, when Boko Haram attacked the Girls’ Science and Technical College in Dapchi. Five did not survive the ordeal.

Tuesday’s event in Westminster Central Hall will feature a number of urgent policy proposals, including cutting UK foreign aid to Nigeria and other methods to pressure the Nigerian government.

Ayo Adedoyin, chief executive of International Organisation for Peace Building and Social Justice UK, said the British, French and American governments – all of whom have a deep connection with Nigeria – have a role to play.

“Threatening sanctions, reputational damage or foreign aid reductions are all ways to put this untrammelled violence at the top of the Nigerian agenda,” he said.