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CAMPAIGN: Activists are calling on the government to do more to find the girls (PA)

ISLAMIST MILITANT group Boko Haram is suspected of abducting another eight girls in Nigeria’s northeastern state of Borno.

The latest kidnapping comes after last month’s mass abduction at a village girl’s school where more than 230 girls were taken by armed men belonging to the group which is fighting to form an Islamic state in West Africa.

The eight girls were taken on Sunday (May 4) evening in the village of Warabe.

They are believed to be aged between 12 and 15.

Nigerian government forces have been fighting Boko Haram in major operations since 2009, while the militants are blamed for the deaths of thousands of people.

Yesterday (May 5), the group’s leader Abubakar Shekau threatened to sell the girls who were taken from the village of Chibok on April 14.

He made the threat in a video that confirmed Boko Haram was behind the kidnapping.

Relatives and activists have started a campaign to pressure the government to act on bringing back the abducted girls.

Villagers in neighbouring towns are concerned that their girls will be targeted by the group, according to reports.

The international community has condemned the abduction and called on Boko Haram to return the children.

Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni was one world leader to condemn the kidnapping and he said: “It would be a mistake for the government of Nigeria to negotiate with these people. The most important thing is to defeat them, then negotiations can come after that”.

Both the UK and US have offered assistance to Nigeria as authorities look for the girls.

Nigerian president Goodluck Jonathan has been criticised for the state’s handling of the abduction, but he claimed officials are doing everything possible to bring the girls home.