A convoy of armed vehicles carried the group, which included two newborn babies, from the Sambisa Forest after a three-day journey to safety.

The Nigerian military says it has rescued more than 677 women and girls from the forest in the last week, as well as destroying more than a dozen insurgent camps, as it presses its campaign against Boko Haram.

The women and children have been taken to a school in Yola which has been turned into a refugee camp for people displaced by the Islamist group.

They will be cared for by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).

It is still not clear if any of the women are the schoolgirls kidnapped from a boarding school in Chibok last year.

Major General Chris Olukolade, a Defence Ministry spokesman, said: "The assault on the forest is continuing from various fronts and efforts are concentrated on rescuing hostages of civilians and destroying all terrorist camps and facilities in the forest."

In the last few weeks, the Nigerian military - backed by troops from neighbouring countries - have regained control of towns in the northeast of the country that had been held by Boko Haram in what it declares is an Islamic caliphate.

Sambisa Forest is reported to be the militants' last holdout.

Some of the women were reportedly shot and killed during operations after Boko Haram used them as a human shield.

Nigerian troops were fired on by the women in the village of Nbita last week.

Officials said seven soldiers were killed, and 12 of the women were also shot dead.

Many of the women and girls are traumatised by their experiences.

Some have been forced into marriage and officials said a number of the rescued group are pregnant.