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1st LD: UN chief hails release of 21 abducted Chibok schoolgirls held by extremist group

Xinhua, October 15, 2016 Adjust font size:

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday welcomed the release of 21 Chibok schoolgirls by the extremist group Boko Haram to the Nigerian government following more than two years of captivity.

The Secretary-General "remains deeply concerned about the safety and well-being of the remaining schoolgirls and other victims of abduction by Boko Haram, who are still in captivity," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a daily news briefing here.

"The secretary-general urges the international community to continue supporting the government of Nigeria in its efforts to secure their release, rehabilitation and reintegration," the spokesman said.

Twenty-one of the schoolgirls kidnapped in 2014 by Boko Haram in Chibok, Nigeria, were freed on Thursday in the first mass release of some of the more than 200 girls and women kidnapped from their school two years ago. Endit