When the news of the rescue was broken on the tweeter handle of the military on Tuesday, many Nigerians had gone online to speculate that the freed ladies included the Chibok schoolgirls.
However, Olukolade did not confirm whether or not the Chibok girls abducted by Boko Haram on April 14, 2014 were among the rescued ladies.
The Defence spokesman told Punch on the telephone that the tweets were the true position of the Army on its operations in Sambisa Forest.
The tweets read, “Troops this (Tuesday) afternoon rescued 200 girls and 93 women from Sambisa. We cannot confirm if the Chibok girls are in the group.
“The troops captured and destroyed three terrorist camps, including the notorious Tokumbere Camp in the Sambisa Forest operation.
“Sambisa Forest: The freed persons are now being screened and profiled. We will bring you details later.”
The Defence authorities stated that the soldiers rescued the girls and the women during an invasion of the Boko Haram stronghold.
The freed girls and women were being screened and profiled to ascertain their identities.
Boko Haram had kidnapped many girls and women, but that of the Chibok girls attracted wide reaction for the single reason that the young girls where taken from their school hotel.
