Abuja, May 9 (IANS): The abduction of teenage girls in the northeast region of Nigeria will mark the end of terrorism in the country, Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan said Thursday.
Jonathan made the statement about his West African country in a speech delivered at the opening of the plenary sessions of the ongoing World Economic Forum on Africa, Xinhua reported.
"In fact, by your presence here in Nigeria at this time, you have already supported us to win the war against terror. If you had refused to come because of fear, the terrorists would have jubilated and even have committed more havoc.
"But your coming here to support us morally is a major blow on the terrorists and we will conquer the terrorists," Jonathan told delegates of the World Economic Forum on Africa in Abuja.
"I believe that the kidnap of these girls will be the beginning of end to terror in Nigeria," he added.
In a video clip released Monday, militant group Boko Haram said its members were behind the mid-April kidnapping of school girls in Chibok Town, an incident which sparked outrage locally and internationally.
During a periodic media chat Sunday, Jonathan had dismissed news that the government was negotiating with the insurgents to secure the release of the abducted school girls.
"The government cannot negotiate with faceless people," said Jonathan, while reassuring parents, guardians and all Nigerians that government would rescue all the abducted girls.
Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, is plagued by the insurgency of Boko Haram, a sect which seeks to enshrine the Islamic Sharia law in the constitution.