Boko Haram massacre in Gwoza

Witness History

BBC

History, Personal Journals, Society & Culture

4.4 • 1.6K Ratings

🗓️ 11 June 2024

⏱️ 10 minutes

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Summary

In 2014, Boko Haram militants drove into Gwoza in north-east Nigeria and began an assault that would leave hundreds of people dead.

Ruoyah, who was just 14, hid in her house for eight hours under continuous fire.

She says when she finally opened the door to leave her house she says: "There were corpses everywhere, we even saw the corpse of our neighbour in our front door."

Ruoyah managed to escape to Cameroon, but her sister was kidnapped by Boko Haram militants.

She was taken into the Sambisa forest where she was forced to marry a militant and starved.

A few months later, Boko Haram's leader unilaterally declared that Gwoza was a caliphate.

Ruoyah now lives in an internally displaced persons camp, she speaks to Anoushka Mutanda-Dougherty.

Archive credit: Channels Television.

(Photo: Credit: )

Transcript

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0:00.0	You're about to listen to a BBC podcast and maybe it's when I had a hand in.
0:04.0	I'm Tammy Walker and I produce podcasts for the BBC.
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0:12.0	That's the thing I love about podcasts.
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0:16.2	But then you have the space to see where it goes.
0:18.4	And doing that at the BBC means we can really run with the best stories
0:21.8	while developing the most unique audio talent.
0:24.3	So if you like what you hear, why not check out the huge range of podcast we've got on BBC
0:29.1	Sounds. Hello and welcome
0:35.0	Welcome to the Witness History podcast from the BBC World Service with me Anushka Matandidowati.
0:40.0	Today we're going back to the 2nd of June 2014 and to Guoza a local government area in northeast Nigeria
0:47.3	It's 930 a.m. Greenwich meantime and Boca Haram are preparing to launch an attack there that will go on to leave hundreds of civilians dead.
0:55.6	But for Roya, a 14 year old girl who lived there with her family,
0:59.6	the day started like any other.
1:02.0	This is her story. day started
1:05.0	from the day.
1:06.0	When I woke up from sleep, I swept the compound and we started cooking.
1:10.0	We had finished and started eating. That was when they came.
1:15.0	When they came, they looked quite normal.
1:18.0	They wore uniforms resembling the military,
1:21.0	and then they started shooting. the sound was loud and scary
	...

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