ABUJA: American and British experts have arrived in Nigeria to help in the hunt for more than 200 schoolgirls whose abduction last month by Islamists prompted universal outrage.

The US embassy in Abuja said on Friday a team of American experts had arrived in Nigeria, without specifying the make-up of the group.

US officials had previously said Washington would send military personnel as well as specialists from the Justice Department and the FBI to help search for the girls kidnapped by the Boko Haram group on April 14 in the northeastern town of Chibok.

British specialists, including defence ministry personnel, also landed in Nigeria’s capital on Friday, the foreign office said.

France and China have also offered satellite imaging equipment to help find the girls whose kidnapping has drawn condemnation worldwide and raised awareness about an ‘Islamist movement’ that has killed thousands since 2009.

Nigeria had initially been slow to respond to the kidnappings and the military’s search effort has been fiercely criticised by activists and parents of the hostages. But a series of protests in the capital, a growing social media campaign, and attention from world leaders and celebrities has put pressure on Nigeria to act more aggressively.

Nigeria had in the past resisted security cooperation with the West, experts said, but amid outrage over the plight of the hostages, President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration this week welcomed offers of help from world powers.—AFP