President Obama has promised that the US will "do everything we can to recover" the 276 schoolgirls seized by militants in Nigeria three weeks ago. A White House spokesman says the team the US is sending to the country will include military and law enforcement personnel skilled in intelligence, investigations, hostage negotiating, and victim assistance, but no American troops will be sent, the AP reports. More:
- Saving the girls—who the militants have threatened to sell into slavery—is the top priority, Obama says, but the militant group needs to be rooted out. "You've got one of the worst regional or local terrorist organizations in Boko Haram in Nigeria, they've been killing people ruthlessly for many years now and we've already been seeking greater cooperation with the Nigerians," he told ABC. "This may be the event that helps to mobilize the entire international community to finally do something against this horrendous organization."