MAIDUGURI, July 7 - More than 60 women and girls abducted last month by suspected Boko Haram militants in northeast Nigeria have escaped their captors, sources said Sunday, but more than 200 schoolgirls are still being held by the Islamists. Local vigilante Abbas Gava said he had "received an alert from my colleagues ... that about 63 of the abducted women and girls had made it back home" late Friday. A high-level security source in the Borno state capital Maiduguri, who requested anonymity because he was not authorised to speak on the matter, confirmed the escape. Gava, a senior official of the local vigilantes in Borno who are working closely with security officials, told journalists the women escaped when their captors went out to fight. "They took the bold step when their abductors moved out to carry out an operation," he said. Clashes took place between the Islamists and the army late Friday after an attack by the insurgents in the town of Damboa, where 53 of them and six soldiers were killed, the army had said. The rebels attacked barracks and a police station while most of the troops were out on patrol in surrounding villages. Spokesmen for the armed forces or the government could not be reached Sunday for comment on the latest developments in the kidnapping cases.More than 200 still missing Activists of the Bring Back Our Girls movement meanwhile tried to march on the presidential palace in Abuja Sunday to pressure the government over the fate of more than 200 girls kidnapped in Chibok, in Borno, on April 14, but were asked by security forces to turn back. "It's 83 days today that the girls have been abducted," activist Aisha Yesufu told the press. "We have been coming out for 68 days and nobody has really listened to us," Yesufu told reporters after the march. That is why the group "decided that we should just take the protest back to the president so that he will know that we are still out there after the 68 days that we have been coming out daily". Of the 276 girls seized in April, 57 have escaped while 219 are still missing. Villagers from the town where Boko Haram abducted the girls appealed to the United Nations on Friday to intervene because of the worsening violence in their region. The community claimed militants were running amok in their area, seemingly with impunity. A state of emergency imposed in Borno and neighbouring Yobe and Adamawa in May last year forced its fighters out of urban centres. But that has come at the expense of protecting people in the countryside, where attacks have increased dramatically, almost on a daily basis, analysts say. Amnesty International claimed in May that military commanders in Borno had advance warning of the Chibok abduction but could not muster enough troops to send. The insurgents' kidnap of the schoolgirls in April provoked international outrage and drew unprecedented global attention to the Islamist uprising. Security experts say the overstretched and under-resourced military is incapable of waging an effective counterinsurgency against the Boko Haram militants, who have killed thousands in their five-year campaign for an independent Islamic state in the north.
More
Grey haze hangs over Hanoi at midday due to poor air quality
Cau Giay, Nam Tu Liem, Bac Tu Liem, Long Bien, Ha Dong, and Hoai Duc Districts were blanketed in thick fog
Read more
Four tourists die after suspected tainted alcohol poisoning in Laos
A young Australian woman was the latest confirmed death
1 day agoIndian tycoon Gautam Adani charged in US over $265 million bribery scheme
Arrest warrants have been issued in the U.S. for Adani and his nephew Sagar
1 day agoAustralian eyes $30m fine for social media flouting under-16s ban
The legislation would force social media firms to take steps to prevent those under 16 years of age from accessing platforms
1 day agoBanana taped to a wall sells for $6.2 mn in New York
The buyer is a cryptocurrency entrepreneur
1 day agoCanada AI project hopes to help reverse mass insect extinction
Scientists have warned the world is facing its biggest mass extinction event since the dinosaur age
1 day agoHighlights
Vietnam rejects rumor of harsher visa regime for foreigners
Under an amended law, the e-visa validity period is extended to 90 days from 30 days
Latest news
Vietnam rejects rumor of harsher visa regime for foreigners
Under an amended law, the e-visa validity period is extended to 90 days from 30 days
Vietnam, Malaysia elevate ties to comprehensive strategic partnership
Both countries strive to push their trade to US$18 billion or higher in a balanced direction
Vietnamese student arrested in S.Korea for allegedly abandoning newborn baby: media
The crying baby girl was found inside a black bag left in a restroom
Former top Vietnamese legislator, transport minister disciplined
Former State President Vo Van Thuong was also found to have committed violations
Nearly 150 sets of human remains found in downtown Hanoi
The remains were burried nearly a meter beneath an alley
ICC issues arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Gallant, Deif
The unprecedented move drew a furious reaction from Netanyahu
Chimps are upping their tool game, says study
'Planet of the Apes' may have been onto something
UNESCO launches climate action event in Hanoi to mark World Children’s Day
Vietnam’s heavy exposure to climate change risks means children are disproportionately affected
Joining hands to help address endometriosis challenges in Vietnam
One in every 10 women is at risk of endometriosis during the reproductive years
Cambodia hosts solemn welcome ceremony for top Vietnamese legislator
A high-ranking Vietnamese delegation led by NA Chairman Tran Thanh Man is on a four-day official visit to Cambodia