Nigeria’s Military Rescues 76 Schoolgirls After Boko Haram Attack

Boko Haram fighters attack a village in northeast Nigeria, kidnapping 76 schoolgirls and killed two others before the Nigerian military reacted and rescued the girls on Wednesday local government officials reported. Another 13 girls are still missing.

The Nigerian military rescued 76 schoolgirls and recovered the bodies of two others on Wednesday, after the students went missing during a Boko Haram attack on a village, three parents, a resident and a local government official told Reuters.

“Everybody is celebrating their coming with songs and praises to God almighty,” said Babagana Umar, one of the parents whose daughter had disappeared. “The only sad news is that two girls were dead and no explanation.”

The rescued girls were returned to the village of Dapchi late on Wednesday evening, Umar and other residents said.

At least 13 students may still be missing, and Reuters was unable to determine how the two girls died.

Earlier on Wednesday, sources told Reuters that 91 people were unaccounted for after a roll-call at their school on Tuesday.

Islamist insurgent group Boko Haram attacked Dapchi in the northeastern state of Yobe on Monday evening.

Nigerian authorities often deny or downplay such incidents, including the Chibok girl kidnapping and more recent abductions, as well as the scale of Boko Haram attacks in the northeast.

Nigeria is still haunted by Boko Haram’s abduction of more than 270 schoolgirls from the town of Chibok in 2014.

That case drew global attention to the nine-year insurgency, which has sparked what the United Nations has called one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

The fighting in Nigeria has claimed over 20,000 lives and has displaced more than two million people since the rise of Boko Haram in 2009. Of the girls abducted in 2014 about 60 escaped and another 100 were later released. The remainder’s whereabouts are unknown but Boko Haram released a video showing the girls stating they wished to remain and not go home.

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Photo: Screen shot Boko Haram video