Great news as more than 80 girls regained their freedom in Nigeria from Boko Haram. The girls that became known as the Chibok girls have been hostage since being abducted in 2014.
The Grio reported:
Five Boko Haram commanders were released in exchange for the freedom of 82 Chibok schoolgirls kidnapped by the extremist group three years ago, a Nigerian government official said Sunday, as the girls were expected to meet with the country’s president and their families.
The confirmation of the prisoner swap came a day after the young women were liberated. The official spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak to reporters on the matter.
There was no immediate comment about the exchange from the Nigerian presidency or Boko Haram, which has links to the Islamic State group. President Muhammadu Buhari’s office said Saturday that “some” Boko Haram suspects in detention had been released for the freedom of the schoolgirls, but it did not give details.
The young women were flown Sunday by military helicopters from northeastern Nigeria to Abuja, the capital, where they were expected to meet the president in the evening.
The International Committee of the Red Cross, which along with the Swiss government mediated the Nigerian government’s negotiations with Boko Haram, said Sunday that the girls soon would meet with their families.
“They will face a long and difficult process to rebuild their lives after the indescribable horror and trauma they have suffered at the hands of Boko Haram,” said Pernille Ironside, acting representative of UNICEF Nigeria.
Authorities say 113 schoolgirls remain missing from the group of 276 abducted from their boarding school in April 2014. Girls who escaped early on said some of their classmates had died from illness. Others did not want to come home because they’d been radicalized by their captors, they said.
Read more in the Grio here.
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