Troops of the Joint Task Force, North East, Operation HADIN KAI have rescued 360 abductees from a Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad enclave in the Mandara Mountains area of southern Borno State.
The military said the operation, carried out on Saturday, was one of the largest hostage rescue missions in the North-East theatre in recent times.
Acting Media Information Officer, Headquarters JTF OPHK, Lieutenant Colonel Haruna M Sani, said the rescue followed weeks of intelligence gathering and operational planning.
The abductees, including men, women and children, were kidnapped from several communities, mainly around Ngoshe.
Lt Col Sani stated that credible intelligence identified the location of the hostages and the insurgent support network.
OPHK intelligence elements used human intelligence, signals intelligence, drone surveillance and long-range patrols to map the area.
"Acting on confirmed intelligence, OPHK Special Forces and troops of Sector 1 launched a coordinated multi-axis operation at night to isolate the objective area," he said.
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The military said the assault achieved tactical surprise, saying several insurgents fled while others surrendered.
It added that the hostages were secured, medically screened and evacuated.
Two infants died from exhaustion caused by the mountainous terrain and prolonged captivity.
The remaining abductees have been moved to safe locations for medical care and humanitarian support.
The Military High Command commended the troops and said follow-on clearance operations are ongoing to neutralise remaining insurgents.
BOSYA President Samaila Ibrahim-Kaigama said four babies born in captivity died from infections, while their mothers are receiving treatment at a government facility.
He called on the Federal Government, Borno State Government and local authorities to conduct proper medical screening of the rescued victims.
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