The Nigerian army says it has pushed Boko Haram militants out of the northeastern town of Chibok, the home of more than 200 schoolgirls the group kidnapped earlier this year.
Army officials said Saturday the military had recaptured the town, which was seized by Boko Haram on Thursday.
Boko Haram has taken a number of towns in the northeastern states of Borno and Adamawa this year for a “caliphate” proclaimed by the group’s leader, Abubakar Shekau.
Nigerian security forces and vigilante groups have succeeded in retaking some areas, including the Adamawa town of Mubi, freed during a battle on Thursday.
Fighting has continued despite a cease-fire announced by the Nigerian government on October 17. Shekau said in a subsequent video that no cease-fire existed and that the kidnapped schoolgirls had been converted to Islam and married off.
The kidnapping from a Chibok secondary school April 14 made headlines and drew outrage from around the world. The Nigerian government has been unable to rescue the schoolgirls despite surveillance and intelligence help provided by the United States, Britain and other allies.
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