Abducted schoolgirls to be released as part of ceasefire agreement

The Nigerian schoolgirls kidnapped earlier this year by Islamist militant group Boko Haram look set to be released following a ceasefire agreement with the Nigerian military. This truce, for which direct negotiations had been held in neighbouring Chad, marks the end of a five-year conflict between the Nigerian government and the Islamist insurgents. “I wish to inform this audience that a ceasefire agreement has been concluded,” chief of defence staff Alex Badeh announced at the end of a three day security meeting between Nigeria and Cameroon. It appears as though the 219 school girls that are being held captive by Boko Haram will be released, although a Defence Ministry spokesman said that part of the negotiations still needs to be finalised. He was “assured that the schoolgirls and all other people in their captivity are all alive and well”.