PANAPRESS
Panafrican News Agency
US: We are helping Nigeria to rescue abducted girls, tackle Boko Haram - Obama
New York, US (PANA) - US President Barack Obama has assured Nigerians in Diaspora that the US is providing assistance to their country to rescue the over 200 abducted girls and also root out the terror group Boko Haram.
President Obama gave the assurance in his reply to a letter sent to him by Nigerians in Diaspora
Organisation America (NIDOA), who sought US assistance in rescuing the girls who were abducted from the school 48 days ago by the group.
"At my direction, and in coordination with our international partners, our Government is providing extensive assistance to help find these girls and bring them home to their families,'' President Obama said in the letter, a copy of which was obtained by PANA in New York Sunday.
''Sadly, this is not an isolated act of terror, and we stand with the Nigerian people in their ongoing struggle against violent extremism,'' he said.
The US President said that as the Nigerian government works to root out Boko Haram and associated groups, ''we will keep providing assistance to help them develop a comprehensive approach to handling the threats posed by these groups.
"We will continue aiding Nigeria as it dismantles these networks of terror and takes meaningful, effective actions to create a future safe from the horrors we see today."
He said the US was committed to helping prevent mass atrocities, protect basic human rights, and promote opportunity for all, adding: ''We do so in partnership with other governments, the United Nations, and with religious institutions, unions, and civil organizations both at home and abroad."
Since launching its violent campaign in 2009, Boko Haram has killed 12,000 and injured 8,000, mostly in North-east Nigeria.
At least 2,000 of the number have been killed this year alone, as the group - which says it is campaigning to establish an Islamic state in the secular country, steps up its attacks.
-0- PANA AA/SEG 1June2014
President Obama gave the assurance in his reply to a letter sent to him by Nigerians in Diaspora
Organisation America (NIDOA), who sought US assistance in rescuing the girls who were abducted from the school 48 days ago by the group.
"At my direction, and in coordination with our international partners, our Government is providing extensive assistance to help find these girls and bring them home to their families,'' President Obama said in the letter, a copy of which was obtained by PANA in New York Sunday.
''Sadly, this is not an isolated act of terror, and we stand with the Nigerian people in their ongoing struggle against violent extremism,'' he said.
The US President said that as the Nigerian government works to root out Boko Haram and associated groups, ''we will keep providing assistance to help them develop a comprehensive approach to handling the threats posed by these groups.
"We will continue aiding Nigeria as it dismantles these networks of terror and takes meaningful, effective actions to create a future safe from the horrors we see today."
He said the US was committed to helping prevent mass atrocities, protect basic human rights, and promote opportunity for all, adding: ''We do so in partnership with other governments, the United Nations, and with religious institutions, unions, and civil organizations both at home and abroad."
Since launching its violent campaign in 2009, Boko Haram has killed 12,000 and injured 8,000, mostly in North-east Nigeria.
At least 2,000 of the number have been killed this year alone, as the group - which says it is campaigning to establish an Islamic state in the secular country, steps up its attacks.
-0- PANA AA/SEG 1June2014
