8 Aug 2021

Nigerian schoolgirl abducted by Boko Haram freed after seven years

5:10 pm on 8 August 2021

A girl kidnapped from the Nigerian town of Chibok has been freed and reunited with her parents seven years after Boko Haram militants captured her and more than 200 of her classmates, Borno state's governor says.

Supporters of the #BringBackOurGirls campaign march for the release of the 219 Chibok schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram militants, in Abuja, on October 14, 2014.

Supporters of the #BringBackOurGirls campaign march for the release of the Chibok schoolgirls, in Abuja, on October 14, 2014. Photo: AFP

The raid on the school in the town one night in April 2014 sparked an international outcry and a viral campaign on social media which used the hashtag #bringbackourgirls.

Governor Babagana Zulum said on Saturday the girl and someone she said she married during her time in 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.

Some 270 girls were originally abducted by the Islamist group but 82 were freed in 2017 after mediation, and another 24 were released or found.

An handout picture released by the PGDBA&HND Mass Communication shows Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari (C) sitting among the 82 rescued Chibok girls during a reception ceremony at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, on May 7, 2017.

A government reception for the 82 girls released in 2017. Photo: AFP

A few others have escaped or been rescued, but about 113 of the girls are still believed to be held by the militant group.

Zulum said reuniting the girl with her relatives raised hopes others still in captivity would be found.

He said the girl would receive psychological and medical care as part of a government rehabilitation programme.

Bandits last month kidnapped schoolchildren from a boarding school in the state of Kaduna, the 10th mass school kidnapping since December in northern Nigeria, which has seen more than 1000 students abducted.

- Reuters

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