Nigerian troops rescued nearly 300 girls and women during an offensive against Boko Haram fighters in the northeastern Sambisa Forest, the military said
The army announced the rescue on Twitter on Tuesday and said it was screening and interviewing the abducted girls and women.
FLASH: Troops this afternoon rescued 200 girls & 93 women from #Sambisa Forest. We cannot confirm if the #ChibokGirls are in this group /1
— DEFENCE HQ NIGERIA (@DefenceInfoNG) April 28, 2015
When the news was announced on twitter most of the locals speculated it was the Chibok girls who had been rescued.
However, Olukolade, the army spokesperson did not confirm whether or not the Chibok girls abducted by Boko Haram on April 14, 2014 were among the rescued ladies.
The mass abduction of the Chibok girls spurred global outrage which led to a social media movement #BringBackOurGirls to rescue them.
Boko haram which means ‘Western education is forbidden’ has been kidnapping women and girls since its existence in Nigeria in 2012.
