The United Nations (UN) has condemned the execution of five aid workers by Boko Haram terrorists in Borno State.
In a statement in response to the brutal killing, UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Mr Edward Kallon, said that “it is unacceptable that those who are trying to help are being attacked and killed.”
He issued the statement in Maiduguri, after the video of the terrorists executing five aid workers went viral on social media on Wednesday.
He said, “Our colleagues and partners were abducted while travelling on the main route connecting the northern town of Monguno with Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.
“Their safety and securing their safe release have been our highest priority since they were captured in June.
“I strongly condemn all violence targeting aid workers and the civilians they are assisting. I am also troubled by the number of illegal vehicular checkpoints set up by non-state armed groups along main supply routes.
“These checkpoints disrupt the delivery of life-saving assistance and heighten the risks for civilians of being abducted, killed or injured, with aid workers increasingly being singled out.
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“This is tragically not the first killing of kidnapped aid workers. We have repeatedly called for such devastating fate and blatant violation of international humanitarian law to never happen again.
“And yet, it does. I implore all armed parties to step up their responsibilities and stop targeting aid workers and civilians.”
Noting that assistance provided byl aid workers to the most vulnerable populations made the difference between life and death in the three most affected North East states, Kallon said that, nearly eight million people were in need of urgent life-saving assistance in the region at the beginning of the year and today, 10.6 million people need urgent support as conflict-affected states battle the COVID-19 pandemic.
“At a time when humanitarian needs have reached unprecedented levels, it is unacceptable that those who are trying to help are being attacked and killed,” he added.
He, however, assured that the killing would not deter the international community from providing aid to millions of Nigerians who desperately needed assistance in the north-east.
He said the three most affected states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe, who had suffered long years of conflict and now needed protection against a deadly virus, still had the support of the humanitarian community.
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