U.S. Sending Troops to Nigeria

The United States is sending technical experts to aid the Nigerian government's search for nearly 300 teenage girls who were kidnapped from their school in mid-April, the White House said Tuesday. The mass abduction has sparked international outrage and mounting demands for Nigeria do more to free the girls.

"Time is of the essence," said White House spokesman Jay Carney.

President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry were to discuss the kidnapping Tuesday during one of their regularly scheduled White House meetings.

Kerry repeated the longstanding offer of U.S. assistance during a conversation Tuesday with Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan....

The State Department under Hillary Clinton fought hard against placing the al Qaeda-linked militant group Boko Haram on its official list of foreign terrorist organizations for two years. And now, lawmakers and former U.S. officials are saying that the decision may have hampered the American government’s ability to confront the Nigerian group that shocked the world by abducting hundreds of innocent girls.

In the past week, Clinton, who made protecting women and girls a key pillar of her tenure at the State Department, has been a vocal advocate for the 200 Nigerian girls kidnapped by Boko Haram, the loosely organized group of militants terrorizing northern Nigeria. Her May 4 tweet about the girls, using the hashtag #BringBackOurGirls, was cited across the media and widely credited for raising awareness of their plight....

Originally posted by pcosmar:
...I fail to see how is is any of the US Governments business,, and is certainly not any threat worthy of a military response....

Originally posted by Breacher:
Part of the reason for a professional volunteer military that is fairly well paid by international standards. This would be a perfect example of something worthy of a Marine expeditionary unit deployment.

...A worldwide effort has begun to try to rescue them, with the United States, France, Britain and most recently Israel pledging to help. The Nigerian military has waged an aggressive, at times brutal, offensive in the region, but so far it has proved unable to make any advances toward the girls’ recovery.

But in Monday’s video, Mr. Shekau apparently offered a hint about what might induce him to release the girls from Boko Haram’s clutches.

“We will never release them until our brethren are released,” he said. “Our brethren that are held in Borno in Yobe, in Kano, in Kaduna, in Abuja, in Lagos and Enugu. Our brethren that are held all over Nigeria,” Mr. Shekau said.

The Nigerian government has not acknowledged any negotiation with the group, though one high official in the north has said some type of bargaining appears to be going on.

The United States would oppose any ransom payment or prisoner exchange to free more than 250 Nigerian schoolgirls kidnapped last month by the extremist group Boko Haram, the Obama Administration said Tuesday.

“It is the policy of the United States to deny kidnappers the benefits of their criminal acts, and that includes ransoms or concessions,” White House Press Secretary Jay Carney told reporters when asked whether Obama would support negotiations with Boko Haram, which abducted the girls last month.

The Nigerian government also rejected releasing prisoners this week.

“What I can tell you is that we’re focused on working with the Nigerian government to locate and bring home those girls,” Carney said. “That includes a team of [U.S. officials in the country]. It also includes manned reconnaissance flights that I can confirm we are conducting in cooperation with the Nigerian government.” (...)

The United States should send in special forces to rescue the hundreds of girls kidnapped by Boko Haram—whether the Nigerian government gives permission or not, according to Sen. John McCain.

“If they knew where they were, I certainly would send in U.S. troops to rescue them, in a New York minute I would, without permission of the host country,” McCain told The Daily Beast Tuesday. “I wouldn’t be waiting for some kind of permission from some guy named Goodluck Jonathan,” he added, referring to the president of Nigeria.

Of course, it’s not exactly a surprise that McCain holds this view. He’s been a long-time advocate for increased U.S. military activity in crises around the globe—from Syria to Ukraine....

Per the War Powers Resolution, President Obama just notified congressional leaders that U.S. forces have been sent to Chad.

Reports from border villagers soon after more than 200 Nigerian schoolgirls were kidnapped from their secondary school in Chibok by Boko Haram indicated that some may have been ferried across Lake Chad or taken to Chad or Cameroon via land routes.

The administration recently received permission from Nigeria to conduct flyover operations in an effort to find the girls, but only said it was in communication with Cameroon and Chad.

“Approximately 80 U.S. Armed Forces personnel have deployed to Chad as part of the U.S. efforts to locate and support the safe return of over 200 schoolgirls who are reported to have been kidnapped in Nigeria,” said the letter from Obama submitted to House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and Senate President Pro Tempore Pat Leahy (D-Vt.).

“These personnel will support the operation of intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance aircraft for missions over northern Nigeria and the surrounding area,” Obama continued. “The force will remain in Chad until its support in resolving the kidnapping situation is no longer required.”

“This action has been directed in furtherance of U.S. national security and foreign policy interests, pursuant to my constitutional authority to conduct U.S. foreign relations and as Commander in Chief and Chief Executive.
I am providing this report as part of my efforts to keep the Congress fully informed, consistent with the War Powers Resolution (Public Law 93-148). I appreciate the support of the Congress in these actions.”

At a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing on Boko Haram this morning, Undersecretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights Sarah Sewell made a brief reference to working with Nigeria’s neighbors.

“For our part, DOD and the Department of State are working closely together on a proposal to enhance border security along Nigeria’s common borders with Chad, Niger and Cameroon, in support of a regional response to counter the threat posed by Boko Haram,” Sewell said. “The concept is to build border security capacity and promote better cooperation and communication among the security forces of each country, with the aim of reducing Boko Haram’s operational space and safe havens.”