Skip links

Chibok Girls remembered one year on after abduction

Read 2 minutes

14 April 2014:

Reports from media local that over 200 girls form Chibok had been kidnapped by boko haram islamist militants, on 14 April.

15 April 2014:

Parents and some girls who escaped say more than 200 students were seized from their school in Chibok in north-eastern Borno state by gunmen overnight. A local government official confirms the incident, saying the exact number of missing students is unclear but puts the number at around 100.

 

16 April 2014:

Nigeria’s military says most of the girls managed to escape or were freed and releases a statement saying only eight girls are still missing.

 

17 April 2014:

Locals say many remain unaccounted for and parents of the missing girls head into the Sambisa forest near the Cameroonian border to search for them. On their return they say they did not see any Nigerian soldiers in the forest.

 

18 April 2014:

Major General Chris Olukolade, a military spokesman, says a report stating that most of the girls had been freed was incorrect but was “not intended to deceive the public.” Parents insist that more than 200 girls are still missing. The military has not rescued any of the girls.

 

23 April 2014:

Nigerians take to social media to show their anger at the government response and Ibrahim M Abdullahi, a lawyer in Abuja, sends the first tweet using the hashtag #BringBackOurGirls

 

1 May 2014:

Desperate parents in Chibok stage a protest calling on the government to do more in the search for the missing girls. Protests are also staged again in towns and cities across Nigeria.

 

2 May 2014:

Nigerian police say militants are holding 223 girls, after 53 of the initial 276 girls who were abducted managed to escape. He explained the higher figure by saying pupils from surrounding schools had gone to Chibok to take exams, as it was believed to be safe.

 

6 May 2014:

Barack Obama says the “heartbreaking” abduction” may be the event that helps to mobilise the entire international community” to finally act against Boko Haram. He says US experts are being dispatched to help find the girls. Eleven more girls are abducted by gunmen from nearby areas of Borno state.

 

7 May 2014:

The #BringBackOurGirls hashtag hits 1 million tweets and US First Lady Michelle Obama joins the online campaign, posting a picture of herself on photo-sharing site Instagram holding a piece of paper with the hashtag on. Nigerian police offer 50 million naira (£180,000; $300,000) for information that could help track the girls down.

PIC

12 May 2014:

Boko Haram release a new video claiming to show around 130 of the abducted girls at an unknown location. In the video, the group’s leader says he will not free the girls until authorities release all imprisoned militants. He also says the girls have converted to Islam.

 

13 May 2015:

Silent protest held in Abuja, almost a year after the abduction, Protesters asking for answers and demand for government and international help

 

14 May 2015:

Newly elected president of Naigeria Muhammadu Buhari has promised to do everything in his powers to save the more than 200  hundred abducted girls of Chibok from the hands of Boko Haram.

 

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.