Did Nigeria Military Aid Chibok Girls' Escape From Captors?

The abduction of 276 girls from Chibok in Borno State, by Boko Haram militants on April 14, 2014 sparked a global outcry that gave rise to the #BringBackOurGirls campaign. Many years of interventions by the army and the government saw the release of a number of the girls - but not eveyone was freed. The anguish of the girls' parents has not ended, almost 7 years later. The latest news from local media is that some of the remaining girls have escaped but this has been denied by the newly appointed defence chief Major General Lucky Irabor, who said: "We do not have any of the Chibok girls in our custody, so if they are not with us we have nothing to confirm again. It is the desire of the military to get the Chibok girls back safely and if our operations have helped those said to have escaped, I think we are glad." The military is reportedly on a clearance operation in the northeast of the country, where the Chibok girls are thought to be held.