Six Abducted Civilians Rescued By Troops In Borno State

The operation, which was confirmed in a statement issued by the Media Information Officer at the Headquarters of the Joint Task Force North East, Lt. Col. Sani Uba, was carried out following sustained military offensives and air interdiction missions targeting terrorist positions within the Mandara Mountains.

The rescued individuals were reportedly intercepted during a coordinated operation in the early hours of May 1, 2026, after troops acted on credible intelligence while returning from a night offensive against insurgent hideouts.

The victims were found around Amuda, a deserted route between Ngoshe and Gava known for terrorist movement. They include 18-year-old Zainab Idris, 17-year-old Fatima Abubakar, 24-year-old Maimuna Abdulrashid, one-year-old Muhammad Idris, seven-year-old Sadiq Abdullahi, and five-year-old Fatima Abdulrashid.

Preliminary findings revealed that the victims were among those abducted during an attack on Ngoshe community on March 3, 2026, and had been held in captivity within a terrorist enclave in Gava before managing to escape.

During the rescue, troops reportedly came under sporadic gunfire as fleeing terrorists attempted to pursue the escapees, prompting a swift military response that forced the attackers to withdraw into the surrounding mountains.

The statement further noted that sustained military pressure has significantly weakened terrorist structures, leading to disorganization within their ranks and increasing cases of escape among captives. It also referenced earlier incidents involving escapees, including a 16-year-old girl allegedly forced into marriage by a terrorist commander.

Following their rescue, the victims were given immediate medical attention at a military facility before being handed over to community leaders. They were later reunited with their families in Ngoshe through the Wali of Ngoshe, Alhaji Shuaibu Dabawa, in what was described as an emotional reunion.

The Armed Forces of Nigeria reaffirmed their commitment to ongoing counter-terrorism operations aimed at restoring peace, rescuing abducted persons, and eliminating insurgent threats across the North-East, while also urging residents to continue providing credible intelligence to security agencies.