Women and girls who escaped the clutches of the militant Islamist group Boko Haram have been further abused, starved and raped by Nigerian soldiers, according to Amnesty International.
A new report, called ‘“They betrayed us,” details the testimony of hundreds of Nigerian woman and girls who say rape and sexual exploitation has been going on for years, despite a presidential inquiry established last year.
“Many of these women and men said that they had suffered brutally under Boko Haram, and were hoping to be rescued — only to find themselves attacked by the military,” the report stated.
Since early 2015, the Nigerian military has recaptured a chunk of territory that had come under the control of Boko Haram in the north-east of the country.
WATCH: Nigerian schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram speak after release
The military then set up so-called “satellite camps” in recaptured towns for displaced men and women. Amnesty International said this is when the military carried out “violence and abuse against this population, including war crimes and possible crimes against humanity.”
Nigeria’s military has denied the allegations, calling the report malicious and false.
Rape in the satellite camps
In these refugee camps, soldiers separated women from their husbands and raped them, sometimes in exchange for food, the report stated.
Some of the women interviewed by Amnesty International said they were beaten and called “Boko Haram wives” by soldiers.
READ MORE: 62 schoolgirls rescued from Boko Haram’s clutches, Nigerian official says
Another woman told the human rights group that a soldier raped her when she was six months pregnant.
“He knew I was five or six months pregnant. He said he saw me three times before. He didn’t offer me any food, he called me and I ignored him but on the third day, he forced me to a room and raped me,” she said.
’15 to 30 people died each day from hunger’
In April 2016, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) reported that around 216,000 of the displaced people were living in 14 satellite camps across Nigeria.
Amnesty said it had collected evidence that thousands of people have starved to death in displacement camps since 2015.
WATCH: Nigerian military rescues nearly 300 women, children from Boko Haram
“Those interviewed consistently reported that 15 to 30 people died each day from hunger and sickness during these months,” the report said.
The human rights group also said satellite images of an expanding graveyard in one of the camps during the time confirmed their testimonies.
Nigerian army denies allegations
Nigerian army spokesman John Agim told CNN the army hasn’t been deployed to displacement camps, which he said are run by the police, local vigilante groups and NGOs.
Conflict in Nigeria
Nigeria has waged a nine-year war against Boko Haram and its now more powerful offshoot, Islamic State West Africa.
Since the conflict started, Boko Haram has reportedly abducted at least 4,000 boys, girls and women since 2009, and trapped tens of thousands more when it took control of towns, Amnesty International said.
WATCH: Aftermath footage of Boko Haram’s attack on Nigerian villages
In total, the conflict has killed more than 30,000 people and spawned one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.
Human Rights Watch has also reported that women and girls displaced by the violence of Boko Haram have suffered rampant sexual abuse at the hands of soldiers, policemen and even camp leaders themselves.
— With files from Reuters
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