Boko Haram releases 21 abducted Chibok girls – Two dead at Shiite processions in Nigeria

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LAGOS, Oct 13, (Agencies): Jihadist group Boko Haram released 21 kidnapped Chibok schoolgirls to the Nigerian government following a prisoner swap, an official in the president’s office said Thursday. The Chibok girls were released as part of a prisoner swap deal struck between Boko Haram, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Nigerian and Swiss governments, said official and local sources. “It is confirmed that 21 of the missing Chibok girls have been released and are in the custody of the department of state services,” presidential spokesman Garba Shehu said in a statement.

“The release of the girls … is an outcome of negotiations between the administration and the Boko Haram brokered by the International Red Cross and the Swiss government,” Shehu said. “The negotiations will continue.” The girls were exchanged for four Boko Haram prisoners in Banki, northeast Nigeria, said local sources.

“The girls were brought to Kumshe, which is 15 kilometres (nine miles) from Banki where a military base is stationed, in ICRC (International Committee of the Red Cross) vehicles,” said a source. “The four Boko Haram militants were brought to Banki from Maiduguri in a military helicopter from where they were driven to Kumshe in ICRC vehicles.” From Kumshe, the Chibok girls were taken by helicopter to Maiduguri, the capital of northeast Borno state.

Meanwhile, at least two people were killed on Wednesday in the northern Nigerian city of Kaduna during clashes at processions by minority Shi’ite Muslims, witnesses said. A police spokesman did not respond to text messages or phone calls seeking confirmation of fatalities, or to respond to claims from residents that officers helped instigate the violence. The clashes occurred during marches to commemorate the Shi’ite mourning day of Ashura. They also came just five days after the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, a Shi’ite sect, was declared illegal by authorities.

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