The United States is now using drones and manned surveillance
aircraft over Nigeria in the search for the hundreds of schoolgirls
kidnapped by Boko Haram.
But signs of them are yet
to emerge, as the task is complicated by the possibility that the girls
have been separated into groups.
The U.S., which is
supporting the Nigerian government's efforts, will continue to deepen
its efforts, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said Wednesday while
traveling to Saudi Arabia.
However, "I have seen no intelligence come back that I am aware of that shows that we've located those girls," he said
The assets provide some
of the best tools to try to find the girls, but the Nigerian government
has shown some reluctance to use U.S. help.
As it is, the U.S. is not sharing raw intelligence from its surveillance aircraft with Nigeria's armed forces.
This is because the
countries have still not established the intelligence-sharing protocols
and safeguards needed for an intelligence-sharing agreement, Pentagon
spokesman Col. Steve Warren said.
That said, the
intelligence gathered through the surveillance flights is being fed to
an interdisciplinary team on the ground, and that team is analyzing it
and providing advice to the Nigerian government, he said.
Warren added that the manned and unmanned aircraft being used are unarmed.
Pressure to find the girls
Wednesday marked one
month since the 276 girls were abducted from Chibok by Boko Haram. A
worldwide campaign to "bring back our girls" has spread awareness of the
incident, and as the days go by, the pressure to find them steps up.
U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, is among those who support American military intervention to find the girls, if needed.
"You know, it's
interesting to me that when a ship is hijacked and taken into custody by
these pirates, we have ... no reservations about going in and trying to
take that ship back and the crew that's being held," he said. "We have
no compunctions about that."
When it comes to the hundreds of girls who were kidnapped, the response has been dragging, he said.
A U.S. military
operation "could be done in a way that is very efficient, but for us not
to do that, in my opinion, would be an abrogation of our
responsibilities," McCain said.
Two senior
administration officials told CNN that it is premature to talk about a
special operations incursion into Nigeria because the girls have not
been found yet.
The U.S. military is there to advise and assist, but not to actively participate, the sources said.
If the girls are found, it would be up to the Nigerians to devise a plan and execute it with U.S. assistance, the sources said.
And that raises other complications.
The Nigerian military is
capable of carrying out a rescue operation, but there are concerns
because it has been heavy-handed in the past and killed many civilians,
the sources said.
As it currently stands,
U.S. law prohibits the U.S. military from working with Nigerian military
units that have been accused of abuses, a senior State Department
official said.
"We've been very clear
about our concerns about the Nigerian reports of and evidence of abuses
by the Nigerian military," the official said.
Even with all of these complications, the U.S. is committed to doing everything it can to find the girls, the official said.
Apparently, the two were said to have gone to the 
