Nigerian Army hands over rescued Chibok girl, 3 children to Borno govt

The Nigerian Army has handed over the rescued Chibok school girl, Lydia Simon, and her three children to the Borno State government.

The Theatre Commander of Operation Hadin Kai, Maj.-Gen. Waidi Shuaibu, told journalists at Mailmalari Cantonment in Maiduguri on Thursday that troops of the 82 Division Task Force Battalion rescued the six-month-old pregnant lady alongside her three children in Gwoza local government area of the state on April 17.

Shuaibu said Simon was number 18 among the girls rescued by the military.

He noted that the abduction of the Chibok school girls in April 2014 made both national and international headlines which culminated in the hashtag, “Bring back our girls”.

According to the commander, several efforts had been made both internationally and nationally to return the girls safely and reunite them with their families.

READ ALSO: Another Chibok girl, Lydia Simon, with three children regains freedom

He said: “One of such national efforts is the conduct of military operations deep within the terrorists’ enclaves which have yielded positive results to facilitate rescue of some of the Chibok girls.

“Starting from Esther Marcus, who appears on serial 103 on the abducted Chibok school girls’ list, who was the first to be rescued by troops of 7 Division Gar, till now efforts are still ongoing.

“Just recently on April 17, one more Chibok girl was rescued with her three children from the Mandara mountain by troops of the theatre will continue to do its best to rescue those still in captivity.

“The rescue will be in line with the strategic direction and guidance from the Chief of Defence Staff and the Chief of Army Staff.

“We thank the Chief of Army staff for all the resources he has provided in the theatre to achieve its mandate.”

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