Relatives of the Nigerian schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko
Haram 100 days ago met with President Goodluck Jonathan on
Tuesday for the first time since the girls were seized.
The much anticipated meeting comes amid reports of a worsening
security crisis in the northeast, where militants have occupied the
town of Damboa and surrounding areas, with the military so far
unable to chase them out.
The girls were kidnapped from a secondary school in Chibok in the
northeast on April 14 and carted away in a convoy of trucks. Of the
276 girls seized in the nightime raid, 219 are still missing.
His office tried to organise a meeting in the capital last week with
a small group of the affected families, after he was urged to do so
by the Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai.
Malala, who survived a Taliban assassination attempt in 2012,
was in Abuja on her 17th birthday to campaign for the girls'
release.
The families balked at the invite, saying that if Jonathan was
unwilling to travel to Chibok, he should bring all of the relatives to
his office to meet with them as a group.
An AFP reporter said a delegation of more than 150 people from
Chibok met Jonathan, Senate President David Mark and Governor
Kashim Shettima of Borno state, the epicentre of the Boko Haram
uprising.
Aside from parents of the hostages, the delegation includes some
of the 57 girls who escaped their militant captors as well as
Chibok community leaders, a source at the presidency said on
condition of anonymity.
After a brief prayer delivered in front of the media, the group
entered closed door talks.
Ayuba Chibok, who has two nieces among the hostages, told AFP
that the government chartered a plane from Yola in the northeast
to fly to the group to the capital on Monday.
The hostages' plight attracted worldwide attention following the
social media and protest campaign called Bring Back Our Girls,
which was backed by prominent personalities ranging from US
First Lady Michelle Obama to the actress Angelina Jolie.
Western powers, including the US, have offered logistical and
military support to Nigeria's rescue effort, but there have been few
signs of progress so far, despite assurances from officials that the
crisis would soon be resolved.
Boko Haram, blamed for killing more than 10,000 people in a five-
year insurgency, has rampaged across parts of Borno in recent
days with little resistance from the military.
An attack that began on Thursday and continued through the
weekend displaced more than 15,000 people and is believed to
have killed scores in the town of Damboa.
"The insurgents are still in control of Damboa," said Kabiru Ali, a
member of the vigilante force in the town who was forced to flee
by the militant onslaught. They have "hoisted their flags," he
added.
There are reports that the militants have in some areas sought to
establish themselves as the local authority, but the picture
remains unclear with terrible phone reception in many of the
affected areas.
The military assured it that it soon flush out the extremists.
"We are not conceding any portion of this country to any terrorist
group," defence spokesman Chris Olukolade said.
Haram 100 days ago met with President Goodluck Jonathan on
Tuesday for the first time since the girls were seized.
The much anticipated meeting comes amid reports of a worsening
security crisis in the northeast, where militants have occupied the
town of Damboa and surrounding areas, with the military so far
unable to chase them out.
The girls were kidnapped from a secondary school in Chibok in the
northeast on April 14 and carted away in a convoy of trucks. Of the
276 girls seized in the nightime raid, 219 are still missing.
His office tried to organise a meeting in the capital last week with
a small group of the affected families, after he was urged to do so
by the Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai.
Malala, who survived a Taliban assassination attempt in 2012,
was in Abuja on her 17th birthday to campaign for the girls'
release.
The families balked at the invite, saying that if Jonathan was
unwilling to travel to Chibok, he should bring all of the relatives to
his office to meet with them as a group.
An AFP reporter said a delegation of more than 150 people from
Chibok met Jonathan, Senate President David Mark and Governor
Kashim Shettima of Borno state, the epicentre of the Boko Haram
uprising.
Aside from parents of the hostages, the delegation includes some
of the 57 girls who escaped their militant captors as well as
Chibok community leaders, a source at the presidency said on
condition of anonymity.
After a brief prayer delivered in front of the media, the group
entered closed door talks.
Ayuba Chibok, who has two nieces among the hostages, told AFP
that the government chartered a plane from Yola in the northeast
to fly to the group to the capital on Monday.
The hostages' plight attracted worldwide attention following the
social media and protest campaign called Bring Back Our Girls,
which was backed by prominent personalities ranging from US
First Lady Michelle Obama to the actress Angelina Jolie.
Western powers, including the US, have offered logistical and
military support to Nigeria's rescue effort, but there have been few
signs of progress so far, despite assurances from officials that the
crisis would soon be resolved.
Boko Haram, blamed for killing more than 10,000 people in a five-
year insurgency, has rampaged across parts of Borno in recent
days with little resistance from the military.
An attack that began on Thursday and continued through the
weekend displaced more than 15,000 people and is believed to
have killed scores in the town of Damboa.
"The insurgents are still in control of Damboa," said Kabiru Ali, a
member of the vigilante force in the town who was forced to flee
by the militant onslaught. They have "hoisted their flags," he
added.
There are reports that the militants have in some areas sought to
establish themselves as the local authority, but the picture
remains unclear with terrible phone reception in many of the
affected areas.
The military assured it that it soon flush out the extremists.
"We are not conceding any portion of this country to any terrorist
group," defence spokesman Chris Olukolade said.
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