The incident -- the latest in a recent string of mass abductions of students in the West African nation -- caused international outrage, with the United States condemning the attack. Zamfara state police and the Nigerian military have conducted joint operations to rescue the schoolgirls. The governor of Zamfara state, Bello Matawalle, announced early Tuesday that schoolgirls have been freed. The terms of their release were not immediately known. It's also unclear whether others remain in captivity, as the discrepancy in the numbers was not explained. I enjoin all well-meaning Nigerians to rejoice with us as our daughters are now safe. Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari took to Twitter to express his "overwhelming joy" over the release of the schoolgirls. I am pleased that their ordeal has come to a happy end without any incident. They need the support of local communities in terms of human intelligence that can help nip criminal plans in the bud. Last week, in the wake of the abduction, Buhari warned that policies of paying ransoms to bandits have "the potential to backfire with disastrous consequences.
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The raid on the school in the north-eastern town one night in April sparked an international outcry and a viral campaign on social media with the hashtag bringbackourgirls. Governor Babagana Zulum said the girl and someone she said she married during her captivity surrendered themselves to the military 10 days ago. Zulum said government officials had used the time since to identify her and contact her parents. About girls were originally abducted by the Islamist group but 82 were freed in after mediation, adding to 24 who were released or found. A few others have escaped or been rescued, but about of the girls are believed to be held still by the militant group.
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Lagos, Nigeria CNN Hundreds of schoolgirls who were kidnapped at gunpoint from their boarding school in Nigeria have been released, authorities said. More Videos Tears of joy and relief as Nigerian schoolgirls return home The girls were abducted on Friday by armed men who raided their state-run school in Nigeria's northwest Zamfara State, the police said. Yusuf Idris, a spokesman for the regional governor Bello Matawalle, said Tuesday that all girls had been safely returned and accounted for. The girls arrived early Tuesday at the Zamfara government's state house, where they were dressed in identical pastel hijabs. Idris said they were in a "good condition," although some of them had open sores on their feet and were given medical treatment. Read More. The girls, pictured after their release on Tuesday.
One of the Nigerian schoolgirls seized by Islamist militants Boko Haram from the town of Chibok in has been freed and reunited with her family. Ruth Ngladar Pogu and a man she is said to have married in captivity recently surrendered to the Nigerian military, according to officials. More than girls were abducted in Chibok, north-eastern Borno state. Over of them have since been freed or managed to escape. Ruth Ngladar Pogu and her children were received by the Borno state governor, the officials said. They said she would now be undergoing a rehabilitation and reintegration programme that will focus on her health and psychological wellbeing. Of the hundreds of girls first kidnapped, some managed to escape shortly after they were seized, while about were freed in exchange for other Boko Haram militants. Mass kidnappings remain a problem in northern Nigeria, with hundreds of pupils snatched this year alone. The kidnapped woman who defied Boko Haram.