Former Senate Leader, Senator Ali Ndume, has praised the courage and dedication of personnel of the Nigerian Army for securing the release of residents of Ngoshe community who had been held captive by insurgents.
The 360 victims, who had been in captivity since March, were rescued on Saturday during an operation carried out by security forces.
The rescue was confirmed in a statement by Lieutenant Colonel Haruna M. Sani, Acting Media Information Officer, Headquarters Joint Task Force (North East), Operation Hadin Kai.
According to him, “Troops of the Joint Task Force (North East) Operation HADIN KAI (OPHK), comprising Special Forces and troops of Sector 1, have successfully rescued 360 abductees from a heavily fortified Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad (JAS) enclave deep within the Mandara Mountains area of southern Borno State.
“The operation, which was the culmination of weeks of painstaking intelligence preparation, covert reconnaissance, and operational planning, resulted in the safe recovery of men, women, and children who had been held in captivity under harsh conditions after being abducted from several communities, particularly within the Ngoshe axis.”
Checks revealed that six of the abducted civilians had earlier been rescued last month around Amuda, a deserted area located between Ngoshe and Gava.
In a statement, Senator Ndume described the military’s weekend offensive against the insurgents as remarkable and worthy of commendation.
“We must applaud the professionalism and spectacular patriotism of men and officers of the Nigerian Army who continue to exhibit outstanding courage in the face of obvious logistic challenges,” he said.
“We are grateful to the Theatre Commander of Operation Hadin Kai, the General Officer Commanding 7 Division Maiduguri, and the Commander of the 26 Task Force Brigade, Gwoza, Borno State.
“I must not fail to mention the selfless efforts of Borno State Governor, Professor Babagana Zulum, whose contributions undoubtedly played a role in the success of the weekend operation by security forces.
“We must also commend the Director-General of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Mrs. Zubaida Umar, for providing relief materials to the displaced persons.
“We urge the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs to also rise to the occasion. It should take the initiative to complement the efforts of the Borno State Government in rebuilding Ngoshe.
“From my findings, with military presence in Ngoshe, the people are willing to leave the Internally Displaced Persons camps if the community can be restored and made habitable for them.”
The senator, who represents Borno South Senatorial District, also called on the Army and other security agencies to intensify efforts toward securing the release of schoolchildren abducted in Mussa, Askira Local Government Area, as well as travelers kidnapped along the Biu–Buratai Road.
Ndume further condemned the killing of soldiers and repentant Boko Haram volunteers in Mandaragra village of Biu Local Government Area.
