How I Escaped from Boko Haram after they killed my parents-16 year old boy

A 16 year old boy has recounted how he escaped after his parents were slaughtered by Boko Haram while he watched..Babagana who was captured by the deadly group crept out of the Boko Haram hideout after three days of being locked there.. He walked through the forest for hours before he found help.He told Daily Beast

“I didn’t leave with anything,“When the chance came to escape, I only had my pants on. I ran almost naked.”

Boko Haram militants invaded the rural town of Gamboru in Borno State, burnt down houses and demanded that the local children be handed over to them. Parents who objected were killed, and a couple of children were forcefully taken.

“They asked me about my parents,They then killed them in front of me.”

“That is how Boko Haram operates. They first take out your parents so you have no one else to fall back to.They killed people for no reason,I just couldn’t stand the horror. It made me terribly scared.”

 Although he was only with the militants for three days, Babagana witnessed acts so brutal that he decided to risk his life to escape

“They killed anyone who didn’t heed to their instructions.Girls were often subjected to sexual abuse. Anyone who proved stubborn was shot dead.”I lost my mind with all that I saw.I thought if I didn’t find a way of escaping, sooner rather than later, it would be my turn.”I tried to talk my colleagues into escaping. They wanted to, but were scared they could be caught and killed,” 

“I was lucky to have escaped,“There were so many voices and bullets coming after me,” he said.

Babagana eventually made it back to Gamboru, but found himself ostracized by his kinsmen, who no longer trusted him. Unable to depend on the community for protection, Babagana again went on the move, traveling to from one village to the other across northern Borno and many times narrowly avoiding recapture as militants kept invading new communities. He finally made it to a displacement camp in Maiduguri, a place he now calls home.

 Hassan Mustapha, a child-protection specialist in Maiduguri, said children are often put to a “test of manhood” once there are conscripted.

“Once a child is conscripted by Boko Haram, he is first asked to kill his parents, which is a symbol of initiation into the sect,” Mustapha said. “They destroy everything of value to these children so they have no options.”

Many of the children captured by Boko Haram serve on the front lines, fighting for control of villages and looting the homes of the civilians. Others children serve as spies, scouts, porters, cooks, and bodyguards for officers. Girls are also kept as sex slaves.