"He promised that the presidency will personally supervise their rehabilitation". A thin-looking Buhari met the girls in the evening.
"Our hopes and expectations are high as we look forward to this news being true and confirmed", said Sesugh Akume, a spokesman for the Bring Back Our Girls group, said in a statement circulated to journalists in Nigeria. At the time, the government denied making an exchange for Boko Haram suspects or paying a ransom.
The Associated Press reports that Nigeria's government confirms that 82 kidnapped Chibok schoolgirls have been released and are expected to meet President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday in the capital, Abuja.
It assured them of "government's resolve to give comprehensive medical attention to the released schoolgirls and ensure their rehabilitation and reintegration into normal society".
Authorities say 276 girls were kidnapped from a government-run girls' secondary school in Chibok on April 14, 2014. Others did not want to come home because they'd been radicalized by their captors, they said.
"On behalf of all Nigerians, I'd like to share my joy with you, your parents, your relatives, friends and government of Borno state on regaining your freedom".
The girls have become a symbol of Nigeria's brutal conflict.
"As a father, I can't help but feel delighted and excited at the release of the 82 schoolgirls", he said.
A Nigerian military official with direct knowledge of the rescue operation said the freed girls were found near the town of Banki in Borno state near Cameroon.
A closed door meeting was held between the girls and the president.
The girls were freed in a swap for an unknown number of detained Boko Haram suspects, according to Buhari's office. This worldwide principle is sound and logical because negotiation with the terrorists only fuels their urge to continue with their heinous crimes. ICRC Africa "thinks" the girls have landed in Abuja.
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"A happy sight for families missing moved ones", the aid group says.
The girls were released on Saturday after negotiation with the militants.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said it "facilitated the safe return" of the girls as a "neutral intermediary" and tweeted photographs of girls boarding a military helicopter.
The militants split previous year with one faction moving away from the group's established figurehead Abubakar Shekau over his failure to adhere to guidance from Islamic State to which Boko Haram pledged allegiance in 2015. According to The Guardian, 21 girls were released in October 2016, as part of a deal that was negotiated by worldwide mediators.
Despite having lost most of the territory it held in 2015, Boko Haram continues to wage its insurgency, which is now in its eighth year.
"We will continue to meet with the girls and monitor their health", Straziuso said.
Boko Haram remains active in the area, despite claims by Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari that the jihadists had been crushed and driven from their last forest hideout. Shehu Sani, who was part of the negotiating effort. Prior to this release, 195 of the girls had been captive.
113 girls are now unaccounted for.
"However, we recognise the concern of President Muhammadu Buhari to ensure the earliest release of the Chibok girls for domestic and worldwide considerations".
This is the largest negotiated release following the abduction of almost 300 girls in 2014.
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