The Nigerian army has said the over 219 Chibok schoolgirls whose kidnap by terrorists more than 600 days ago, spawned global protests and outrage, can still be rescued.
Commander-In-Chief Muhammadu Buhari has said the girls are no longer in one location and some of them may have been married off by their captors.
The Acting Director, Defence Information, Military Headquarters, Abuja, Col. Rabe Abubakar, told a press conference in Lagos that the military is being careful with regards to the rescue of the girls.
“The operation to recover the Chibok girls is alive and still ongoing. We have continued to make rescue efforts, and we will do all within our powers to bring the girls back”, Abubakar said.
He added that the morale within the ranks of the fighting forces is a lot higher now and said it is important not to rush the rescue efforts.
“However, we will not rush to rescue the girls. It requires diligent intervention and a high-level operation to rescue the girls. In due time, every captive of Boko Haram will be released. The issue of the low morale of the Nigerian military men has now become a thing of the past. A lot of achievements have been recorded recently, and this cannot be disconnected from the high morale of the army.
“We want to assure our citizens that soon, insurgency will be a thing of the past. But, it is not only about the military or the North-Eastern region. It is our collective duty to ensure that there is peace in the country.
“The Nigerian army has put together a multilateral cooperation. Niger, Nigeria, Chad and Cameroon are partnering to ensure we win the terrorism war.”
The military chief also said the army will rehabilitate insurgents who lay down their arms.
He said, “The Defence Headquarters has brought out a committee to work out modalities to set up a safe horizon. This is a place where terrorists who decide to surrender will go. Once they are there, they will be spared of any molestation and given treatments conforming to international best practices.
“A terror group can only survive on information. Information has been identified as one of the key elements relied on by terrorist groups to perpetrate their heinous crimes. It is for this reason that we seek collaboration with the media. We are not sleeping. We are cooperating with the relevant agencies in the fight against the terrorists.”
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