Defence Headquarters reveal why they have not rescued Chibok schoolgirls

The Defence Headquarters has said they have not rescued the missing Chibok girls from Sambisa Forest because they are trying to get them out alive, without causing harm to them.

Speaking yesterday, July 3 with Leadership in Abuja, the director of information at the Defence Headquarters, Major General Chris Olukolade said they are working to get the girls back alive in the best way possible.

"To the best of our knowledge, they are still accessible. If we tried to force our way in, they may be killed. If we force our way there, they will kill them. This is what we want to avoid at all cost; rescue operations of that nature should not be done in a hurry. Sambisa (forest) is not impenetrable. But let me say it here: they mined almost everywhere around where they are keeping these girls," he said.

He explained that some elements were trying to politicise the operation of the Military but they would not be drawn into politics.

It would be recalled that after Boko Haram abducted more than 200 girls from Government Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State during a night raid, the Federal government started making efforts to find the girls and bring them home alive.

In May, the Chief of Defence Staff, Air Marshal Alex Badeh, stated that the Nigerian Army had located where members of Boko Haram were holding the abducted girls but that they would not use force to rescue the girls in order to prevent the terrorists from killing them.