Boko Haram kidnaps 22 girls and women in 2 raids in Nigeria to become "jihadi brides"

More than 20 girls and women have been abducted in two raids by Islamist extremist group Boko Haram, according to reports in Nigeria.

The jihadists launched a dawn raid close to the border with Cameroon, grabbing the women and children as they attempted to flee.

In a separate raid a herdsman was killed and 50 of his cattle were shot dead, while a further four women and girls were taken by the group.

Eighteen girls were abducted from the village of Pulka, close to the border with Cameroon, on Thursday morning.

The first raid saw 18 women seized at 6am on Thursday in the village of Pulka, near Nigeria's border with Cameroon.

A community leader told AFP: 'Boko Haram fighters from Mamman Nur camp arrived in pickup vans around 6am and seized 14 young girls aged 17 and below while residents fled into the bush.

'They picked four other girls who were fleeing the raid they came across in the bush outside the village.'

n April 2014, Boko Haram sparked worldwide outrage after kidnapping 276 female students from a secondary school in Chibok, eastern Nigeria.

According to the official, who asked not to be named for fear of reprisals, the attackers were loyal to the Boko Haram faction headed by Abu Musab Al-Barnawi, son of the terror group's founder Mohammed Yusuf.

Barnawi was appointed last year by ISIS to replace leader Abubakar Shekau, who had pledged allegiance to the Middle East jihadist group in 2015.

Another resident confirmed the raid and said the girls were likely to end up as brides for the fighters.

'They didn't harm anyone during the raid and they made no attempt to shoot people running away from the village,' said the resident.

Boko Haram released 21 of the seized schoolgirls in October last year, but nearly 200 remain missing after the April 2014 raid which shocked the world.

In the second incident outside the village of Dumba, close to Lake Chad, the jihadists killed a herdsman who had tried to escape after refusing to pay protection money, said Adamu Ahmed, a member of an anti-Boko Haram militia.

'When the Boko Haram gunmen came for the money they realised he had left with everything and they decided to go after him on their motorcycles,' Ahmed said.

'They caught up with him near Dumba where they slaughtered him and shot dead 50 of his cattle.

'They took four women from the man's family and the rest of the herd,' he said.

The promotion of Barnawi had revealed divisions in the group, as Shekau had been criticised for mass killings and suicide attacks against civilians.

Barnawi and his right-hand man Mamman Nur, who is seen as the real leader, had promised residents in areas under their control would not be harmed as long as they did not cooperate with Nigerian troops fighting Boko Haram.

But in recent weeks the Islamist fighters have intensified raids in areas near Lake Chad, stealing food from residents.

They have also killed several civilians they accused of cooperating with the military. 

In April 2014, Boko Haram sparked worldwide outrage after kidnapping 276 female students from a secondary school in Chibok, eastern Nigeria.

In October 21 of the girls were released, but nearly 200 of them remain missing.