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Chadian Troops Rescue Boko Haram Hostages


Officials say security forces in Chad have rescued Nigerians who were recently kidnapped by Boko Haram, a Nigerian militant group.

The abductees were snatched last Sunday by the militants in a raid on a Nigerian town near the border with Chad.

The militants, along with nearly 100 kidnapped Nigerians, were stopped at the border by Chadian soldiers.

It was not immediately clear what the soldiers did with the Boko Haram militants and whether the rescued Nigerians were sent home.

Boko Haram wants to enforce an Islamic state in Nigeria, whose population of more that 170 million is almost evenly divided between a mainly Muslim north and largely Christian south.

The group has been accused of kidnapping hundreds of people in the northeast to use as conscripts, wives and slaves.

Boko Haram's April 14 abduction of schoolgirls from the remote town of Chibok drew unprecedented international attention to the conflict and offers of help from Western powers.

Some information for this information was provided by AP and AFP.

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