Troops of the 3 Battalion, 22 Brigade of the Nigerian Army in Jarawa, Kale Balge Local Government, in Borno State on Monday freed no fewer than 1,623 Boko Haram captives
The freedom of the captives is the latest in a series of rescues by the army in its continued war to purge the terrorist group from the North East of the country.
Acting on a tip-off, the troops assisted by 10 members of the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF), went on the offensive at a suspected location of Boko Haram terrorists at Jarawa general area, the Nation reports.
The Director of Army Public Relations, Brig.-Gen. Sani Usman, said the troops came under heavy fire as they entered the village.
“The troops responded decisively and went further to clear Deima, Artano, Saduguma, Duve, Bardo, Kala, Bok, Msherde and Ahirde settlements. During the operation, the troops neutralised 21 Boko Haram terrorists, rescued 1,623 residents of Jarawa, who were held captives by the terrorists. They also recovered 3 AK-47 Rifles with registration numbers 56522244, 563729686 and UF 3646, a 36 Hand Grenade, 12 Cutlasses and 4 Motorcycles.”
The military spokesman said the rescued persons have been escorted to an Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) Camp in Rann. All the children, he said, were also vaccinated.
