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A group of Nigerian schoolgirls abducted by the extremist group Boko Haram exactly two years ago have been identified in a new video, raising hopes that they are all alive and renewing global calls for efforts to find them.
A video obtained by U.S. network CNN was shown to three mothers of girls abducted two years ago from Chibok in northeast Nigeria in the first possible sighting of the girls since a video of them in captivity was released in May 2014.
Boko Haram militants abducted 276 schoolgirls from Chibok on April 14, 2014, of which 57 escaped but 219 are still missing despite a global campaign #bringbackourgirls involving celebrities and U.S. first lady Michelle Obama.
About 15 girls featured in the new video, saying they were from the Government Girls Secondary School in Chibok and pleading with the Nigerian government to cooperate with Boko Haram on their release.
The girls said they were being treated well but wanted to go home and be with their families.
Rifkatu Ayuba and Mary Ishaya said they recognized their daughters, Saratu and Hauwa, in the video, while a third mother, Yana Galang, identified five of the missing girls.
A CNN spokesman said the network had obtained the video from a source "close to the negotiations" after it was sent to negotiators by their captors as "proof of life".
He said it appeared to have been shot on December 25 last year because the girls say so in the video and the metadata also indicated this.
Amnesty International estimates about 2,000 girls and boys have been abducted by the Boko Haram since 2014, with many used as sex slaves, fighters and even suicide bombers.
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