Boko Haram returns some kidnapped girls

Boko Haram extremists on Wednesday returned some of the 110 schoolgirls they kidnapped last month from Nigeria’s Yobe state, witnesses and government officials confirmed. The extremists in February stormed the boarding school in the town of Dapchi and abducted the girls. Umar Hassan, a Dapchi resident, said the town received reports Wednesday that the insurgents were heading their way, and many people fled for shelter. Hassan and another resident, Ba’ana Musa, said they saw some of the kidnapped girls exiting nine vehicles at about 2 a.m. The Islamic extremists told the town’s residents they returned the girls as a warning. “Don’t ever put your daughters in school again,” they said. Boko Haram means “Western education is sin” in Hausa language. Information Minister Lai Mohammed said the militants released 91 of the schoolgirls and added “no ransoms were paid” for their release. Amnesty International on Tuesday released a report that said Nigerian security forces received warnings ahead of last month’s attack but failed to take precautionary measures.