CGTN America
In this photo released by the Nigeria State House, Nigeria President, Muhammadu Buhari, centre, meets with Chibok school girls recently freed from Nigeria Extremist captivity in Abuja, Nigeria, Sunday, May 7, 2017. (Bayo Omoboriowo/Nigeria State House via AP)
Boko Haram militants in Nigeria released dozens of abducted Chibok schoolgirls this week. The girls arrived in the capital of Abuja and are expected to be received by the president.
A government official said five Boko Haram commanders were freed to secure the release of the schoolgirls.
CGTN’s Thuli Tshabalala reports.
The released schoolgirls arrived at the Abuja airport and were driven away in a military convoy. They were found near the border town of Banki in Borno state, near Cameroon’s territory.
A Nigerian official said they secured the release of these 82 girls in exchange for Boko Haram prisoners. Switzerland and the International Committee of the Red Cross helped secure their release after lengthy negotiations with the militant group.
The girls were welcomed by the Nigerian president’s chief of staff.
Around 276 girls were kidnapped in April 2014 by the militant group. Around 57 managed to escape, but more than 200 had remained missing for more than two years.
