Justin Welby cautioned about the difficulty involved in negotiating with Boko Haram, in an interview he gave on Sunday.
Archbishop Welby emphasized that negotiations were absolutely necessary, in order to return the more than 200 school girls currently being held captive by the group. But he underscored that a group like Boko Haram was diffuse, comprised of different subgroups, with divergent purposes, and therefore negotiations would need to reach into all the different layers.
It’s worth noting that prior to becoming a priest, Archbishop Welby did extensive work in Nigeria, as an oil executive, and returned to be a negotiator between militant groups in Southern Nigeria, after ordination.
The whole article, well worth a read, is here.
Meanwhile, the leader of Boko Haram has released a video of the girls in what appears to be a first step towards negotiations.
More on that is here.