Officials term it a challenging task
As the United States joined in the effort to trace the more than 200 Nigerian schoolgirls kidnapped by the militant Islamist group Boko Haram, First lady Michelle Obama vowed on Saturday that her country would do everything possible to find the girls and bring them home.
“like millions of people across the globe, my husband and I are outraged and heartbroken over the kidnapping of more than 200 Nigerian girls from their school dormitory in the middle of the night,” she said, delivering the weekly radio address in place of President Barack Obama.
“This unconscionable act was committed by a terrorist group determined to keep these girls from getting an education — grown men attempting to snuff out the aspirations of young girls,” she said, adding: “In these girls, Barack and I see our own daughters. We see their hopes, their dreams — and we can only imagine the anguish their parents are feeling right now.”
The State Department conceded that it was a challenging task, with 25 days having already passed since the girls were kidnapped after the militants stormed their secondary school in a village near the Cameroon border on April 14. According to reports, while some 50 girls have since escaped, more than 200 are still held by the insurgents.
“It’s challenging. Time is of the essence,” State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki said, adding: “We’re going to do everything possible. Given the circumstances, it’s tough, and I don’t want to make any predictions about the outcome.”
The Boko Haram terror group that claimed responsibility for the kidnapping has threatened to “sell” the girls into slavery.
Michelle Obama praised the girls, who went to school knowing “full well the dangers they might encounter” because they were “determined to one day build careers of their own and make their families and communities proud”. She also lauded the parents for their courage to send the girls to school despite the threats.