Nigeria engages international intermediaries to free Chibok girls

Nigeria has engaged local and international intermediaries in reaching out to Boko Haram for the release of the Chibok schoolgirls in captivity, President Muhammadu Buhari said Thursday.

The administration was willing to bend over backwards to make the abductors of the girls release them, the Nigerian leader said in a message to mark the coming 3rd anniversary of the abduction of the Chibok schoolgirls on April 14.

He said the government would do everything to secure the freedom of the remaining Chibok schoolgirls in captivity of Boko Haram.

"I wish to reassure the parents of the Chibok girls, all well-meaning Nigerians, organizations and the international community that as a government, we are unrelenting on the issue of the safe return of our children," he said.

"I trust that soon, our collective efforts will be rewarded with the safe return of our schoolgirls to their families, friends and their communities," he added.

Buhari said Nigerians had every reason to celebrate the return of 24 of the Chibok schoolgirls as well as thousands of other Nigerians who were abducted by the terrorists.

He said government was in constant touch through negotiations and local intelligence to secure the release of the remaining girls and other abducted people.

He appealed to the parents and all Nigerians not to lose hope on the return of the remaining schoolgirls.

More than 200 schools girls were seized by armed men who stormed their dormitories on the night of April 14, 2014, at the Girls Secondary School in Chibok. Some had managed to escape while others remained unaccounted for.

On Oct. 13, 2016, 21 girls were freed following negotiations between the Nigerian government and Boko Haram, which claimed responsibility for the abduction. Endite