hangs

A tragic event shook a compound on Polo Road in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital in northeastern Nigeria, this weekend when 11-year-old Mahmud was found dead after reportedly taking his own life. 

The incident has deeply saddened the local community and raised urgent questions about the unseen struggles young children face.

Mahmud was living with extended relatives because his mother passed away last year. His father, who works as a driver in Abuja, was away, meaning Mahmud was already dealing with the pain of loss and being separated from his immediate family.

The sad event, according to those familiar with the incident, happened right after a senior relative scolded Mahmud for not doing his laundry, a simple house chore. Moments later, younger children in the compound cried out, which drew the attention of neighbours.

Neighbours quickly rushed to the scene and found Mahmud hanging. They brought him down immediately and took him to a hospital, but tragically, he was confirmed dead.

Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Nahum Dasso-Kenneth, confirmed the incident to HumAngle, stating: “We received a report from one Muhammad Sheriff, who resides near Polo Road. At about 11:30 a.m., a boy named Mahmoud Adamu was found dead, apparently having hanged himself using an electric cable tied to a door.”

​Police visited the scene, viewed the boy’s body, and subsequently took him to the State Specialists Hospital, where his death was confirmed.

​”Though we are still investigating the circumstances that led to his death, the remains of the boy have been released to the family to be buried according to Islamic rites,” DSP Dasso added.

Sources familiar with the incident said Mahmud may have practicalised some of the uncensored movies kids are being exposed to these days. 

​“I helped bring down Mahmoud’s lifeless body,” said Usman Ali, a cap laundry attendant whose shop is adjacent to the deceased’s family home. “I found he was drenched in his own urine and faeces, which indicates he struggled in immense pain during the hanging before he died. This struggle suggests he was very much unsure of the dire consequences of the act before he committed it.” 

​”We must exercise extreme caution regarding the content our kids watch on TV and mobile phones, as some may venture into practising the misleading or dangerous behaviours they find online,” he said. 

Ahmed Shehu, a civil society actor and chief executive of Peace Ambassador Centre for Humanitarian and Empowerment (PACHE), opined that “when children live through the violence and horror of war, their minds are deeply damaged, pushing them toward self-harm and even acts like suicide.” 

He said children who witness constant fear, death, and loss deal with a crushed spirit, resulting in serious conditions like depression and PTSD. 

“When this pain becomes too much to handle, they often look for ways to cope – even if those ways are harmful. Self-harm or thinking about suicide can sadly become their desperate escape from overwhelming emotional distress, or a way to feel like they have some control over their suffering.

“We have a fundamental duty to offer strong mental health help and support right now. We must help these young people heal the deep scars of trauma to prevent them from taking such tragic, self-destructive paths,” he said.

Cambodia says the mine that wounded four Thai soldiers was a remnant of past conflicts, but Bangkok says the explanation is insufficient.

Cambodia has denied laying new landmines along its border with Thailand after Bangkok suspended the implementation of an enhanced ceasefire signed last month over an explosion that wounded four Thai soldiers.

In a statement on Tuesday, the Cambodian Ministry of National Defence expressed regret at the landmine explosion the previous day in Thailand’s Sisaket province near the countries’ shared border, saying the blast had taken place in an old minefield.

The ministry said such unexploded ordnance was “remnants of past conflicts” and urged Thai soldiers to avoid patrols in mine-contaminated zones.

Despite the dispute, “both military forces on the front lines had communicated with each other, and, as of now, the situation remains calm, with no tension having been reported,” the ministry added.

Thailand and Cambodia signed their enhanced truce in Malaysia last month after long-running territorial disputes between the Southeast Asian neighbours led to five days of combat in late July.

The conflict, which killed at least 48 people and temporarily displaced an estimated 300,000, marked their worst fighting in recent history.

The enhanced ceasefire, signed in the presence of United States President Donald Trump, sought to build on an earlier truce brokered in July and included the withdrawal of troops and heavy weapons.

It also called for Bangkok’s release of 18 Cambodian prisoners of war.

The Thai government on Tuesday insisted the Cambodian explanation was insufficient and said it was halting the release of the Cambodian soldiers, which had been slated for Wednesday.

Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow said his country’s decision would be explained to the US and Malaysia, the chair of the regional bloc, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which has facilitated the ceasefire process.

“What they [Cambodia] have said is not sufficient. We have to see what Cambodia’s stance is from now on,” he said.

The Thai military late on Monday said officials had inspected the landmine explosion site in Sisaket and found an explosion pit and three more antipersonnel mines.

Spokesperson Major General Winthai Suvaree said the explosion occurred in an area that Thai soldiers had previously secured. He said that since October 17, the soldiers had removed landmines and laid defensive barbed wire there.

But the wire was destroyed on Sunday, and the soldiers checking the site on Monday stepped on the mine, Winthai said.

“The evidence led to the conclusion that intruders secretly removed the barbed wire and laid the landmines in the Thai territory, targeting the personnel who conduct regular patrols there,” Winthai said, according to the Bangkok Post.

“The act shows Cambodia’s insincerity in reducing conflict and reflects hostility which violates the jointly signed declaration,” he added.

The military said a sergeant lost his right foot in the explosion and the other three suffered minor injuries from shrapnel or the impact of the blast.

There was no immediate comment from the US or Malaysia.

While the Thai-Cambodian truce has generally held since July 29, both countries have traded allegations of ceasefire breaches.

Analysts said a more comprehensive peace pact adjudicating the century-long border dispute at the core of the conflict is needed.