NEW YORK (January 11, 2015) – “These images from Northern Nigeria should be searing the conscience of the world.

“Some two thousand innocent children, women and elderly reportedly massacred in Baga.

“Young girls sent to die with a bomb strapped to their chests in Maiduguri.

“And lest we forget, more than two hundred girls stolen from their families, still lost.

“Words alone can neither express our outrage nor ease the agony of all those suffering from the constant violence in northern Nigeria.

“But these images of recent days and all they imply for the future of Nigeria should galvanize effective action.  For this cannot go on.”

About UNICEF

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) works in more than 190 countries and territories to put children first. UNICEF has helped save more children’s lives than any other humanitarian organization, by providing health care and immunizations, clean water and sanitation, nutrition, education, emergency relief and more. The U.S. Fund for UNICEF supports UNICEF's work through fundraising, advocacy and education in the United States. Together, we are working toward the day when no children die from preventable causes and every child has a safe and healthy childhood. For more information, visit www.unicefusa.org.

For more information, contact:

Susannah Masur, U.S. Fund for UNICEF, 212.880.9146, smasur@unicefusa.org