Christians and Muslim faithfuls in Nigeria have been urged to use Sunday and coming Friday to offer thanksgiving to God for the release of the 21 Chibok girls, local media reports.
The National Inter-faith and religious Organisation of Nigeria for Peace through the coordinator, Bishop Musa Fonson also asked Nigerians to pray for an end to terrorism and other forms of insurgencies in the west African nation.
Fonsom said even though there are other girls still in captivity, the release of this batch has raised hopes of the return of the remaining ones.
“We should pray for God to touch and soften the heart of those holding the remaining girls to also release them unhurt to their families,” he said.
“Our belief is that whatever efforts we make as humans it will make tremendous impact when we commit them to God. We must thus unite our faiths in making supplications to God for the safe return of the remaining schoolgirls,” he added.
On Thursday, Boko Haram released 21 girls who were among the 276 girls and women, ages 16 to 18, that militants herded from bed in the middle of the night at a boarding school in Chibok, Nigeria, in April 2014.
As many as 57 girls escaped almost immediately in 2014, and one was found this spring. Just under 200 remain unaccounted for after their release.
The 21 were freed before dawn Thursday in the northeastern Nigerian town of Banki, near the border with Cameroon.
