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Nigeria abductions: Headmistress pleads for girls' lives | Nigeria abductions: Headmistress pleads for girls' lives |
(about 4 hours later) | |
The headmistress of a school in Nigeria has appealed to the government to do more to save teenage girls abducted by suspected Islamist militants on Monday. | The headmistress of a school in Nigeria has appealed to the government to do more to save teenage girls abducted by suspected Islamist militants on Monday. |
Asabe Kwambula also called on the kidnappers - thought to be members of the Boko Haram group - to "have mercy on the students". | |
Officials said some 85 girls were still missing while 44 managed to escape. | |
Separately, Boko Haram has said it was behind Monday's bombing in the capital, Abuja, which killed at least 75 people. | |
The group's leader, Abubakar Shekau, made the statement in a video message sent to news agencies. | |
He also threatened further attacks, but made no mention of the schoolgirls' abductions, which took place just hours after the blast in Abuja. | |
'Save innocents' | 'Save innocents' |
Ms Kwambula said she had so far "registered" 32 students as having escaped from the kidnappers, adding they appeared to be unharmed. | |
"I am pleading with the government to secure the release of the children, to save the lives of these innocents," she told the BBC's Will Ross. | "I am pleading with the government to secure the release of the children, to save the lives of these innocents," she told the BBC's Will Ross. |
"I am with the parents, praying continuously for the teenagers' safe return." | "I am with the parents, praying continuously for the teenagers' safe return." |
Her plea came after the military admitted that most of the girls had not been freed as it earlier stated. | |
Correspondents say the raid on the boarding school is a great source of embarrassment for the Nigerian authorities, who have been saying that their military campaign against the militants is succeeding. | Correspondents say the raid on the boarding school is a great source of embarrassment for the Nigerian authorities, who have been saying that their military campaign against the militants is succeeding. |
Gunmen reportedly stormed the remote school in Chibok late on Monday, stealing food supplies and ordering the students on to lorries. | |
It is thought that the militants took the girls to forested areas near the Cameroonian border. | |
Some of the abducted later managed to jump off the trucks, while others ran from captivity during prayer time or while they were cooking. | |
The security forces have been working with vigilante groups and local hunters to find the schoolgirls. | The security forces have been working with vigilante groups and local hunters to find the schoolgirls. |
The well-armed Boko Haram fighters have killed hundreds of civilians this year, slitting the throats of many of their victims, our reporter says. | The well-armed Boko Haram fighters have killed hundreds of civilians this year, slitting the throats of many of their victims, our reporter says. |
Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states in north-east Nigeria have been under emergency rule since last May. | Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states in north-east Nigeria have been under emergency rule since last May. |
Militants from Boko Haram - which means "Western education is forbidden" in the local Hausa language - frequently target educational institutions. | Militants from Boko Haram - which means "Western education is forbidden" in the local Hausa language - frequently target educational institutions. |