U.S offers to help Nigeria in hunt for abducted girls


The United States has offered to help Nigeria
in the search for the 200+ schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram men on April 14th.

"We have been engaged with the Nigerian
government in discussions on what we might do to help support their
efforts to find and free these young women," State Department
spokeswoman Marie Harf told a daily briefing. "We will continue to have
those discussions and help in any way we can."
Harf did not elaborate on the kind of assistance Washington is
offering, but said: "We know Boko Haram is active in the area and we
have worked very closely with the Nigerian government to build their
capacity to fight this threat." Continue...


Separately, a group of U.S. senators introduced a resolution
condemning the abduction and urging U.S. government assistance in the
rescue effort.


"The U.S. and the international community must work with the Nigerian
government to ensure these girls are reunited with their families and
deepen efforts to combat the growing threat posed by Boko Haram," said
Senator Chris Coons of Delaware, the chairman of the Senate's African
Affairs subcommittee, and one of the resolution's six sponsors.
In fiscal year 2012, the United States provided over $20 million in
security assistance to Nigeria, part of that to build the country's
military, boost its capacity to investigate terrorist attacks and
enhance the government's forensic capabilities, she said.



News source: Reuters

U.S offers to help Nigeria in hunt for abducted girls