TheCable

The kidnapped Chibok schoolgirls will be released in batches starting from next week, security sources have told TheCable.

The first batch, comprising about 70 girls, will be released to the president of Chad, Idriss Deby, by representatives of Boko Haram.

This is said to be a gesture by the insurgents to show that they are serious with the ceasefire agreement they entered into with the government of Nigeria.

There are no firm dates yet on when the other girls will be released, presumably because the insurgents would like to see the Nigerian government act in good faith first.

It is still unclear how long it will take to secure the release of all the girls ─ believed to be 219 ─ because they are no longer in one place.

The Boko Haram wives

It is also unclear if all the girls are still alive or may ever be located again as a result of frequent change of locations by the militants to prevent rescue by Nigerian security forces.

Boko Haram leader, Abubakar Shekau, had threatened to sell them off as slaves in a video he released shortly after the girls were kidnapped on the eve of April 14, 2014.

“The Boko Haram commanders said at the meeting in N’djamena (the capital of Chad) that the girls are scattered all over West Africa. They are in Chad, Cameroon and Niger,” one of the sources said.

“They agreed to release them in batches, most likely in groups of 60 and 70 in the coming weeks.”

A senior security source told TheCable that the Boko Haram commanders are also seeking the release of their wives and children who are in detention at different security formations across the country.

They were arrested for various reasons: channelling funds to militants, aiding suicide-bombing, transporting bomb materials and helping to recruit insurgents.

The sources refused to disclose the agreement the Nigerian authorities had with the insurgents over their demand.

However, TheCable understands that government is ready to release non-combatants as a sign of good faith with the ceasefire deal.