The Boko Haram terror sect has released 21 out of the 200 Chibok girls captured in 2014.
The girls were picked up by military helicopter from Banki area of Borno state where Boko Haram militants dropped them off earlier today.
Read Report From BBC Below:
Twenty-one of the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram have been freed, a senior Nigerian government official has told the BBC.
It is thought that they are now with the security services in the north-eastern city of Maiduguri.
It is not yet clear how the girls were rescued.
The Islamist militant group kidnapped more than 250 students from a school in Chibok in April 2014 – an act that provoked international condemnation.
The official who spoke to the BBC confirming the release of the 21 Chibok girls wanted to remain anonymous and the government has not issued a statement.
Previous reports of the girls’ release have turned out not to be true.
The BBC’s Martin Patience in Lagos says if it is true that a group of girls has been rescued it will be seen as a major success for the government of President Muhammadu Buhari.
It is been under intense pressure to do more to secure their freedom, he says.
Mr Buhari took office in May 2015 with a promise to defeat Boko Haram, and gave the military a deadline of the end of the year to end their insurgency.
Over the last 20 months, Nigeria’s army and its regional allies have recaptured much of the territory the militant group controlled, but the militants are still active.
Last month, Mr Buhari called for the UN to mediate with Boko Haram to secure the release of schoolgirls, saying he was prepared to swap militants who are in custody for the girls.
But the problem has always been finding a credible leader to negotiate with – not helped by the fact that in August the group split into two factions.
More updates Coming soon…