As international pressure keeps mounting on Nigeria to find victims of Chibok abduction, President Goodluck Jonathan has poured cold water on the possibility of releasing Boko Haram prisoners in exchange for the over 200 schoolgirls abducted from the Borno State town.

Speaking to the British Africa Minister Mark Simmonds, the president said categorically that there would be no such thing.

“He made it very clear that there will be no negotiation with Boko Haram that involves a swap of abducted schoolgirls for prisoners,” said Simmonds who met with President Jonathan to discuss the international rescue missions for the kidnapped girls.

Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau had made prisoner-exchange a condition for releasing the Chibok girls in the video released by the insurgency, in which the girls were seen dressed in Islamic garb and chanting from the Qur’an.

Meanwhile, the international community has continued to help Nigeria in searching for the girls. The United States has deployed drones while Britain offered surveillance plane and a military team.

“Today, I can announce we have offered Nigeria further assistance in terms of surveillance aircraft, a military team to embed with the Nigerian army in their headquarters and a team to work with United States experts to analyse information on the girls,” British prime minister, David Cameron told the UK parliament.

Similarly, the United States has vowed to support Nigeria until the girls are found. “The kidnapping of the hundreds of children by Boko Haram is an unconscionable crime and we will do everything possible to support the Nigerian government to return these young women to their homes and to hold the perpetrators to justice,” the US secretary of state John Kerry said.

The US also promised assistance by way of training so as to enable Nigeria to take a comprehensive approach in countering Boko Haram. Part of the assistance is to build local law enforcement capacities to investigate terrorism cases, effectively deal with explosive devices and secure Nigeria’s borders.

Earlier in a 56-minute video in which Shekau mixed Arabic, Hausa, English and Kanuri, he declared war against those he described as infidels, including Christians and said “If you bring three trillion troops, we will not release the girls. We stand to deal with infidels.

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