The White House has been at pains to stress that personnel would not take part in combat operations and would be armed only for self-defense.

Nigeria greeted that announcement as a “welcome development.”

President Muhammadu Buhari took office in May vowing to end the violence that has killed scores and spooked much-needed international investors.

But US efforts to give him military assistance have been hampered by concerns about human rights abuses carried out by the country’s military.

And until now Washington has largely shied away from engaging its vast military assets to combat Boko Haram, with policymakers wary of fueling militant recruitment or fusing the group’s ties with Middle Eastern Islamists.