--- description: Boko Haram is suspected to be responsible title: Boko Haram Suspected to Have Kidnapped 40 Boys and Men in Nigeria image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1510c80410dc589e/698777fccd1bbad74e6f4733/ap665781005775.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Nigeria](/tag/nigeria/) ## Nigeria Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # 40 Boys and Men Reportedly Abducted in Nigerian Village  by [Olivia B. Waxman](/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Staff Writer Jan 3, 2015 5:44 PM CUT  The leader of Nigeria's Islamic extremist group Boko Haram on Oct. 31, 2014. The leader of Nigeria's Islamic extremist group Boko Haram on Oct. 31, 2014.AP  by [Olivia B. Waxman](/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Staff Writer Jan 3, 2015 5:44 PM CUT Militants abducted as many as 40 boys and men from a village in northwest Nigeria this week in a raid that authorities have reportedly blamed on Boko Haram, the Islamist group that kidnapped over [250 school girls](http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/11/world/africa/boko-haram-in-nigeria.html "undefined") last year. The victims, taken from the northeastern Nigerian village of Malari this week, are believed to be in their teens and early 20s, according to a witness, Reuters [reports](http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/01/02/us-nigeria-violence-idUSKBN0KB1A020150102 "undefined"). Boko Haram, which hasn’t yet claimed the latest abduction, has kidnapped [hundreds of women and girls](http://features.hrw.org/features/HRW%5F2014%5Freport/Those%5FTerrible%5FWeeks%5Fin%5FTheir%5FCamp/index.html "undefined") from northern Nigeria during its five-year insurgency. Fifty-seven of the 276 school girls kidnapped in April have escaped, while parents of the remaining victims recently [appealed](http://www.newsweek.com/parents-abducted-nigerian-girls-appeal-un-296346 "undefined") to the United Nations for help in the rescue efforts. According to [Reuters](http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/01/02/us-nigeria-violence-idUSKBN0KB1A020150102 "undefined"), “Boys are recruited as fighters and the girls as sex slaves, security officials say.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3652795/boys-men-abducted-nigeria-boko-haram-report/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3652795/boys-men-abducted-nigeria-boko-haram-report/"},"headline":"40 Boys and Men Reportedly Abducted in Nigerian Village","datePublished":"2015-01-03T17:44:11.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T03:15:16.239Z","description":"Boko Haram is suspected to be responsible","url":"https://time.com/3652795/boys-men-abducted-nigeria-boko-haram-report/","keywords":["Nigeria"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1510c80410dc589e/698777fccd1bbad74e6f4733/ap665781005775.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Olivia B. Waxman","jobTitle":"Staff Writer","url":"https://time.com/author/olivia-b-waxman/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1510c80410dc589e/698777fccd1bbad74e6f4733/ap665781005775.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Boko Haram","caption":"Boko Haram","creditText":"AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/nigeria/","name":"Nigeria"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3652795/boys-men-abducted-nigeria-boko-haram-report/","name":"40 Boys and Men Reportedly Abducted in Nigerian Village"}}]}] ```