Nigeria’s military announced late on Thursday that Serah Luka was among 97 women and children rescued earlier that day in the Damboa area of the northeastern state of Borno.
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The army had on Thursday released a statement and a picture of one Serah Lukah, supposedly one of the girls kidnapped from Chibok two years ago. While some jumped from trucks on the night of the kidnapping to escape, at least 218 girls remain unaccounted for.
Civilian vigilante forces who were assisting the military found Ali on Tuesday wandering the outskirts of the Sambisa Forest, a Boko Haram stronghold.
Nigerian President Mohammadu Buhari (centre) flanked by Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima (right) and Chief of Staff for the Kaduna State Governor Hadiza Bala Usman (right) carries Amina Ali’s four-month-old baby on her arrival at the presidency in Abuja, on Thursday.
The announcement of the rescue had generated debate, with some people questioning the Army’s claim, saying Sarah Luka is not one of the names on the list of the abducted girls.
The girl is one of three daughters of a pastor of the Nigerian branch of the USA -based Church of the Brethren, kidnapped by Boko Haram in two separate attacks, community leader Pogu Bitrus told The Associated Press.
The rescued Chibokschoolgirl, Amina Ali-Nkeki, speaks during a meeting at the Presidential Villa in the capital Abuja, Nigeria, May 19, 2016.
In a statement issued by Plan International Nigeria, the Country Director, Dr. Hussaini Abdu called on the government to sustain the effort of rescuing the remaining girls still in captivity of the Boko Haram alive. Amina must be enabled to go back to school.
According to the message, the man who accompanied Amina to meet Buhari was her brother and not her supposed husband, who is an alleged Boko Haram commander.
In his words, the troops killed 35 Boko Haram terrorists and recovered several arms and ammunitions and other items.
Their kidnap caused global outrage and led to the #BringBackOurGirls campaign on social media.
There are indications that most of the abducted Chibok girls are pregnant.
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Nigeria’s army has recaptured most of the territory seized by Boko Haram, but the jihadist group, which past year pledged loyalty to Islamic State, still regularly carries out suicide bombings.
