Boko Haram admitted to being the culprit behind the mass abduction of hundreds of schoolgirls in Nigeria's northern state of Borno.
The 276 girls were taken from their school in Chibok three weeks ago, but up until now the Islamist militant group never claimed responsibility for the act, AFP news agency reported. The claim was made in a 57-minute video from the group that was obtained by the agency, in which Boko Haram's leader said they plan on selling the schoolgirls.
"I abducted your girls," leader Abubakar Shekau said, AFP reported.
Fifty-three girls were able to escape after they were taken from their dormitories and forced onto a truck on the night of April 14. But nearly 230 girls, ranging between ages 16 and 18, are still missing. Reports say they were taken to Chad and Cameroon and sold as brides, but those reports have not been confirmed, according to AFP.
Shekau did not mention where the rest of the girls currently are. The leader said the girls should not have been in school, but should have been married.
"I will sell them in the market, by Allah," Shekau said, AFP reported. "I will marry off a woman at the age of 12. I will marry off a girl at the age of 9."
The Nigerian government has faced heavy criticism for not taking enough action to find the girls, with protests being organized outside parliament in Abuja. Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan promised the girls would be returned to their families and that they are seeking international help.
"This is a trying time for this country...it is painful," the Nigerian president said in his first public comment on the kidnapping on Sunday, AFP reported.
Boko Haram, which translates to "Western education is sinful," has increased its attacks on schools across northern Nigeria, including the killing of 29 students at a boarding school in the northeast Yobe state in February.
The group has killed thousands more since 2009 when it began its campaign to form an Islamic state in the north.
