3rd Ld-Writethru: Nigeria says 76 out of 110 abducted Nigerian schoolgirls released by Boko Haram

ABUJA, March 21 (Xinhua) -- The Nigerian government on Wednesday confirmed that 76 out of the 110 schoolgirls abducted from an all-girl college in the northeastern town of Dapchi last month have been released by the Boko Haram terror group.

Minister of Information and Culture Lai Mohammed said the girls were released at about 3 a.m. local time on Wednesday "through back-channel efforts and with the help of some friends of the country."

According to Mohammed, the release of the 76 girls was "unconditional."

The spokesman of the Nigerian government said for the release to work, the government had a clear understanding that violence and confrontation would not be the way out.

"This could endanger the lives of the girls, hence a non-violent approach was the preferred option.

"Within the period when the girls were being brought back, an operational pause was observed in certain areas to ensure free passage and also that lives were not lost," he added.

Earlier, presidential spokesman Garba Shehu told Xinhua by telephone that the released girls were being taken to safety.

A jubilant crowd welcomed the girls to Dapchi town on Wednesday, according to witnesses.

Local residents of Dapchi said some people suspected to be Boko Haram fighters brought back the girls to the town in trucks, the same way they were abducted from their dormitories at the Government Girls Science and Technical College on Feb. 19.

The girls were only dropped off somewhere in the town and not handed over to anyone.

"Everyone fled for safety when the news about suspected Boko Haram's invasion got to us. But it was soon realized that the people who brought the girls were carrying no guns," said Mallam Adamu, a resident.

Last Wednesday, Nigerian leader Muhammadu Buhari visited Dapchi, located 100 kilometers from Damaturu, capital of the northern Yobe State to sympathize with parents of the girls and assure them that girls would return soon.

Buhari had said the government would bring back the girls through negotiation and not by force.

The tragedy of their abduction had brought back memories of a similar occurrence four years ago in Africa's most populous country when more than 200 schoolgirls, also from an all-girl college, were abducted by Boko Haram in the northeastern town of Chibok.

Only 107 of the Chibok girls have been rescued or returned amid ongoing government negotiation with Boko Haram.

The United Nations believes Boko Haram has killed more than 20,000 innocent people since 2009 through terror attacks. Enditem