Nigerian defence officials believe they will negotiate the rapid release of more schoolgirls abducted by Islamic militants in Nigeria
raising the prospect of a swift end to one of the most high-profile
kidnappings perpetrated by a terrorist group in recent years.
Twenty one of the 276 schoolgirls, taken from their hostel in a government boarding school in the small town of Chibok by Boko Haram in April 2014, were freed early on Thursday morning in a deal brokered by international mediators.
The kidnapping of the girls led to the global campaign #BringBackOurGirls, with public figures including the US first lady, Michelle Obama, taking part.
Few details have emerged of the ordeal of the abducted girls, many of whom are believed to have been taken as wives by extremists and systematically raped. Others have reportedly been forced to carry out demanding physical tasks.
About 190 girls from Chibok are still held by the militants. Fifty-seven fled within hours of being captured. In May, one girl was found and rescued in an area close to Boko Haram strongholds.
“We’re not authorised to release the details of how the girls were retrieved yet, but the operation to retrieve the girls is ongoing. We are optimistic we will retrieve more of the Chibok girls from Boko Haram very soon, in the coming weeks,” Gen Rabe Abubakar, a defence ministry spokesman, said.
The freed girls were on the way from the north east of the country, where Boko Haram has its remaining strongholds, to Abuja, the capital, on Thursday afternoon. A team of social workers, doctors and counsellors had been readied for their arrival.
Many were reported to have babies with them, born in captivity.
Earlier in the day, a spokesman for Muhammadu Buhari, the Nigerian president, confirmed that 21 of the missing girls were in the custody of the department of state services.
“The release of the girls, in a limited number, is the outcome of negotiations between the administration and Boko Haram brokered by the International Red Cross and the Swiss government. The negotiations will continue,” he said.
“The president welcomes the release of the girls but cautioned Nigerians to be mindful of the fact that more than 30,000 fellow citizens were killed via terrorism.”
Information minister Lai Mohammed denied reports that four Boko Haram prisoners were exchanged for the girls. “This is not a swap, but a release,” Mohammed said.
The release will be a boost to Buhari, who vowed to crush Boko Haram within a year when he took power in May 2015. While government forces have taken back large amounts of territory from the group, it has remained active, killing hundreds of people in suicide bombings.
The #BringBackOurGirls campaign group issued said Thursday’s release was a “wonderful development” that confirmed “what we have always known about the capacity of our government to rescue our #ChibokGirls”.
Prof Emma Shehu, a leader of the group, said she was relived by the news.
“We’ve been castigated by the past government, by the military and by the hardliners in the current administration for continuing with our advocacy and protests for the kidnapped girls. They’ve treated us as though we were mad but we’re happy that this is partly a vindication of our insanity. For the parents its raised their hopes,” Shehu said.
The Chibok girls are among thousands of adults and children who have been abducted by Boko Haram during its seven-year insurgency. The group is short of manpower and has turned to abductions as recruitment has slowed.
Negotiations with Nigerian government representatives for the release of the schoolgirls have been complicated by splits within Boko Haram. The movement has fractured into two, possibly three factions over the issue of links with Islamic State.
Isis, of which the Nigerian group is still theoretically an affiliate, announced last month that Abu Musab al-Barnawi was its new leader, replacing the erratic Abubakar Shekau. The decision may have been prompted by Shekau’s use of female suicide bombers and targeting of Muslims.
Shekau has continued to claim to be in control of the group. A video released of the Chibok girls in August seemed to have come from his camp somewhere in the sprawling Sambisa forest, in Borno. It showed about 50 of the girls and included a demand for the release of imprisoned militants in exchange for them.
A suicide bomber in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State and birthplace of Boko Haram, killed eight people on Wednesday.
British and US special forces have been assisting the Nigerian military in their campaign against Boko Haram. Support by soldiers from the neighbouring countries of Niger, Cameroon and Chad – was critical in pushing back the extremists, experts said.
The previous Nigerian government, under Goodluck Jonathan, conducted high-level negotiations before realising it was talking to impostors.
Buhari’s government was previously thought to be attempting to rescue the girls. The army had launched airstrikes on Boko Haram strongholds and claimed to have wounded or even killed Shekau. The extremist leader subsequently appeared, apparently unhurt, in a video.
Abubakar said on Thursday: “It doesn’t matter whether he is dead or alive, the main thing is the group is being defeated.”
“The Boko Haram of today is not the one of years ago. They can only bomb locations now because they hold no territory and we are defeating them at each stage. The government is negotiating with Boko Haram, including prisoner swaps, but at the same time we the military are degrading them where we can. That is proving an effective way of defeating this group.”
Elizabeth Donnelly, an expert at London’s Chatham House, said the release suggested “a potential opening with the insurgents”.
“There is still a question of why only this number [of girls has been released] but it shows that negotiations are possible and that is really important in trying to shift the nature of the conflict,” Donnelly said.
In the past year, the Nigerian army has retaken towns and villages in the north-east controlled by Boko Haram, and has freed hundreds of women and children held captive. However, many survivors face rejection or are stigmatised when they return to their families or are settled in refugee camps.
In many areas of northern Nigeria, millions of victims of malnutrition, neglect and in some cases famine are surfacing, threatening a vast humanitarian crisis. Aid workers say hundreds of thousands of children are chronically malnourished.
Twenty one of the 276 schoolgirls, taken from their hostel in a government boarding school in the small town of Chibok by Boko Haram in April 2014, were freed early on Thursday morning in a deal brokered by international mediators.
The kidnapping of the girls led to the global campaign #BringBackOurGirls, with public figures including the US first lady, Michelle Obama, taking part.
Few details have emerged of the ordeal of the abducted girls, many of whom are believed to have been taken as wives by extremists and systematically raped. Others have reportedly been forced to carry out demanding physical tasks.
About 190 girls from Chibok are still held by the militants. Fifty-seven fled within hours of being captured. In May, one girl was found and rescued in an area close to Boko Haram strongholds.
“We’re not authorised to release the details of how the girls were retrieved yet, but the operation to retrieve the girls is ongoing. We are optimistic we will retrieve more of the Chibok girls from Boko Haram very soon, in the coming weeks,” Gen Rabe Abubakar, a defence ministry spokesman, said.
The freed girls were on the way from the north east of the country, where Boko Haram has its remaining strongholds, to Abuja, the capital, on Thursday afternoon. A team of social workers, doctors and counsellors had been readied for their arrival.
Many were reported to have babies with them, born in captivity.
Earlier in the day, a spokesman for Muhammadu Buhari, the Nigerian president, confirmed that 21 of the missing girls were in the custody of the department of state services.
“The release of the girls, in a limited number, is the outcome of negotiations between the administration and Boko Haram brokered by the International Red Cross and the Swiss government. The negotiations will continue,” he said.
“The president welcomes the release of the girls but cautioned Nigerians to be mindful of the fact that more than 30,000 fellow citizens were killed via terrorism.”
Information minister Lai Mohammed denied reports that four Boko Haram prisoners were exchanged for the girls. “This is not a swap, but a release,” Mohammed said.
The release will be a boost to Buhari, who vowed to crush Boko Haram within a year when he took power in May 2015. While government forces have taken back large amounts of territory from the group, it has remained active, killing hundreds of people in suicide bombings.
The #BringBackOurGirls campaign group issued said Thursday’s release was a “wonderful development” that confirmed “what we have always known about the capacity of our government to rescue our #ChibokGirls”.
Prof Emma Shehu, a leader of the group, said she was relived by the news.
“We’ve been castigated by the past government, by the military and by the hardliners in the current administration for continuing with our advocacy and protests for the kidnapped girls. They’ve treated us as though we were mad but we’re happy that this is partly a vindication of our insanity. For the parents its raised their hopes,” Shehu said.
The Chibok girls are among thousands of adults and children who have been abducted by Boko Haram during its seven-year insurgency. The group is short of manpower and has turned to abductions as recruitment has slowed.
Negotiations with Nigerian government representatives for the release of the schoolgirls have been complicated by splits within Boko Haram. The movement has fractured into two, possibly three factions over the issue of links with Islamic State.
Isis, of which the Nigerian group is still theoretically an affiliate, announced last month that Abu Musab al-Barnawi was its new leader, replacing the erratic Abubakar Shekau. The decision may have been prompted by Shekau’s use of female suicide bombers and targeting of Muslims.
Shekau has continued to claim to be in control of the group. A video released of the Chibok girls in August seemed to have come from his camp somewhere in the sprawling Sambisa forest, in Borno. It showed about 50 of the girls and included a demand for the release of imprisoned militants in exchange for them.
A suicide bomber in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State and birthplace of Boko Haram, killed eight people on Wednesday.
British and US special forces have been assisting the Nigerian military in their campaign against Boko Haram. Support by soldiers from the neighbouring countries of Niger, Cameroon and Chad – was critical in pushing back the extremists, experts said.
The previous Nigerian government, under Goodluck Jonathan, conducted high-level negotiations before realising it was talking to impostors.
Buhari’s government was previously thought to be attempting to rescue the girls. The army had launched airstrikes on Boko Haram strongholds and claimed to have wounded or even killed Shekau. The extremist leader subsequently appeared, apparently unhurt, in a video.
Abubakar said on Thursday: “It doesn’t matter whether he is dead or alive, the main thing is the group is being defeated.”
“The Boko Haram of today is not the one of years ago. They can only bomb locations now because they hold no territory and we are defeating them at each stage. The government is negotiating with Boko Haram, including prisoner swaps, but at the same time we the military are degrading them where we can. That is proving an effective way of defeating this group.”
Elizabeth Donnelly, an expert at London’s Chatham House, said the release suggested “a potential opening with the insurgents”.
“There is still a question of why only this number [of girls has been released] but it shows that negotiations are possible and that is really important in trying to shift the nature of the conflict,” Donnelly said.
In the past year, the Nigerian army has retaken towns and villages in the north-east controlled by Boko Haram, and has freed hundreds of women and children held captive. However, many survivors face rejection or are stigmatised when they return to their families or are settled in refugee camps.
In many areas of northern Nigeria, millions of victims of malnutrition, neglect and in some cases famine are surfacing, threatening a vast humanitarian crisis. Aid workers say hundreds of thousands of children are chronically malnourished.
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