Islamist militants have reportedly taken another 60 girls and 31 boys in northeast Nigeria, compounding a crisis that began in April when the same group kidnapped more than 200 girls.

The latest abductions were made public on Tuesday by the Associated Press, whose reporters couldn't safely verify the information. Nigerians reportedly witnessed the abductions on Saturday in the village of Kummabza. Some villagers relayed information to reporters after they fled the Boko Haram militants.

The initial kidnappings didn't receive much international attention until Oby Ezekwesil, a former Nigerian government official, implored the terrorists to "Bring back the girls" at an event on April 23.

Reports then came out that the girls would be sold as sex slaves for as little as $12, after which the hashtag #BringBackOurGirls started to gain traction. That prompted figures such as Michelle Obama to get involved.

Our prayers are with the missing Nigerian girls and their families. It's time to #BringBackOurGirls. -mo pic.twitter.com/glDKDotJRt

— The First Lady (@FLOTUS) May 7, 2014

But the social media campaign has withered over the past few weeks.

"The public and the media are fickle, and events come and go," EJ Hogendoorn, the deputy director for Africa at the International Crisis Group, an organization that fights to end deadly conflicts, told Mashable.

The online campaign pressured the Nigerian government into addressing the issue, Hogendoorn said. But many politicians feel that the political risk in going after extremists outweighs the risk they take by letting militants carry out attacks.

"The Nigerian government is very adept at playing the crisis game," Hogendoorn said. "When something emerges, it causes an uproar, they then appoint a blue ribbon committee or something to take care of it and kind of let those things die down."

Boko Haram, the group behind both mass-kidnappings, has demanded the release of militant prisoners from the Nigerian government in exchange for the girls, but Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has so far refused.

The Nigerian military has said it knows the location of the girls who were abducted in April, but is worried that the militants might murder the girls if government troops attack. The United States military has sent a small contingent to assist the Nigerian government in the search.

The group, whose name translates to "Western education is sinful," has existed since 2002, but has become notably more vicious in recent years.

Boko Haram began in Maiduguri, the capital city of Nigeria's Borno state, and then spread across northern and central Nigeria, according to Stratfor, a geopolitical intelligence firm. The group first gained notoriety in 2010 for attacking Christians with clubs and machetes. By 2011, the militants had adopted a tactic of suicide bombings.

The terrorists, who seem to move freely throughout large swaths of Nigeria, have killed an estimated 5,600 people in the past five years. Of those, 2,000 were killed just this year, according to the Associated Press.

As recently as June 17, a tricycle taxi loaded with explosives killed 14 people at an outdoor World Cup viewing venue. Though no one has claimed responsibility, Boko Haram has targeted sports venues in the past.

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