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| Chibok schoolgirls: Nigeria's Boko Haram frees 21 | Chibok schoolgirls: Nigeria's Boko Haram frees 21 |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Twenty-one of the schoolgirls kidnapped in 2014 by Boko Haram in Chibok, Nigeria, have been freed, the president's spokesman has confirmed. | Twenty-one of the schoolgirls kidnapped in 2014 by Boko Haram in Chibok, Nigeria, have been freed, the president's spokesman has confirmed. |
| Garba Shehu said the release was "the outcome of negotiations between the administration and Islamist militants". | Garba Shehu said the release was "the outcome of negotiations between the administration and Islamist militants". |
| The freed students are currently with the security forces. | The freed students are currently with the security forces. |
| Boko Haram seized more than 270 students from a school in Chibok, north-east Nigeria - an act that provoked international condemnation. | |
| It also sparked one of the biggest global social media campaigns, with tweeters using the hashtag #BringBackOurGirls. | It also sparked one of the biggest global social media campaigns, with tweeters using the hashtag #BringBackOurGirls. |
| President Muhammadu Buhari's spokesman said on Twitter that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Swiss government had acted as mediators in the talks with Boko Haram. | |
| Mr Shehu added that negotiations were continuing. | Mr Shehu added that negotiations were continuing. |
| The students were released in exchange for four militants, the AFP news agency reports, quoting local sources. | |
| It adds that the 21 schoolgirls were driven to a military base in ICRC vehicles, and the militants were also transported by the ICRC. | |
| "I can only weep, right now. You know that kind of cry that is a mix of multiple emotions," Obiageli Ezekwesili, one of the leaders of the #BringBackOurGirls movement, has tweeted in response to the news. | "I can only weep, right now. You know that kind of cry that is a mix of multiple emotions," Obiageli Ezekwesili, one of the leaders of the #BringBackOurGirls movement, has tweeted in response to the news. |
| The president has also tweeted a reaction saying that he welcomed the release "following successful negotiations". | |
| Up to now there had only been one confirmed release of a student kidnapped from Chibok. | Up to now there had only been one confirmed release of a student kidnapped from Chibok. |
| In May, a 19-year-old woman was found by an army-backed vigilante group. | In May, a 19-year-old woman was found by an army-backed vigilante group. |
| After that it was believed that 218 students were still missing. More than 50 managed to escape on the day they were captured. | After that it was believed that 218 students were still missing. More than 50 managed to escape on the day they were captured. |
| Boko Haram has also kidnapped thousands of other people during its seven-year insurgency in north-east Nigeria. | Boko Haram has also kidnapped thousands of other people during its seven-year insurgency in north-east Nigeria. |
| More than 30,000 others have been killed, the government says, and hundreds of thousands have been forced to flee from their homes. | More than 30,000 others have been killed, the government says, and hundreds of thousands have been forced to flee from their homes. |
| Boko Haram at a glance: | Boko Haram at a glance: |