A Nigerian schoolgirl abducted by extremists 10 years ago is rescued pregnant and with 3 kids
ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — A girl who was seized from her school along with hundreds others during a raid by extremists ten years ago in northeastern Nigeria has been rescued together with her three children, the Nigerian army said Thursday.
Lydia Simon, who is five months pregnant, was rescued by Nigerian troops in the Gwoza council area of Borno state, where the 15-year insurgency by Islamic extremists is concentrated, according to a statement from the army.
The statement was accompanied by a picture of Simon and her children, who appear to be aged between 2 and 4. She is yet to be reunited with her family.
Simon was among 276 girls seized from their school in Nigeria’s Chibok village in April 2014 at the height of the extremist violence in the region. About 82 of them are still in captivity.
The first of a series of mass school kidnappings in the West African nation, the Chibok abduction shocked the world and triggered a global social media campaign tagged #BringBackOurGirls.