A Nigerian journalist, Ahmad Salkida, is being sought by the country’s army following this week’s release of a video by Boko Haram purportedly showing some of the 219 schoolgirls kidnapped in northeast Nigeria in April 2014.
Salkida, a freelance, is wanted on the grounds, which are disputed, that he is linked to the Islamic extremist group which claims allegiance to Isis. He fled Nigeria in 2013 to live in the United Arab Emirates.
According to a statement issued by the Nigerian military, there is “no doubt” that Salkida and two other men it is also seeking - Ahmed U Bolori, coordinator of the Partnership Against Violent Extremism, and Aisha Wakil, a lawyer - are connected to Boko Haram.
The army believes Salkida and the others “are in possession of information on the conditions and the exact location of schoolgirls.”
However, tweets on Salkida’s Twitter account, make clear his hostility towards Boko Haram and his sympathy for the plight of the kidnapped girls.
And some websites, such as Quartz Africa, appear unconvinced by the allegations against Salkida, accusing the army of “going after” the journalist who happens to have been the first recipient of the Boko Haram video.
Salkida has certainly enjoyed a rare access to Boko Haram’s leadership. In 2009, he interviewed the group’s former leader, Mohammed Yusuf. As a result he was arrested and (allegedly) tortured.
After fleeing to the UAE, Salkida has been increasingly critical of claims by Nigeria’s army about its much vaunted progress in the fight against Boko Haram, suggesting the claims were exaggerated.
In a posting on his own blog, Salkida has argued that his actions have “stayed within the creed of professional journalism”. He also pledged, “in the coming days”, to fly back from his self-imposed exile to Nigeria and hand himself in to the army.
