Nigeria says ceasefire agreed with Boko Haram

Government officials say agreement reached with armed group for truce and release of abducted school girls. Nigeria's official news agency says the government fighters from Boko Haram have agreed to an immediate ceasefire. It quoted the chief of defence staff, Air Marshal Alex Badeh, as ordering his troops to immediately comply with the agreement on Friday. The news came as another official confirmed there had been direct negotiations this week in neighbouring Chad about the release of more than 200 schoolgirls abducted six months ago. "The Nigerian government has reached two agreements with the Boko Haram group. Firstly a ceasefire agreement and then the release of the abducted Chibok girls," a presidential source told Reuters news agency.