The Nigerian army has handed over to local authorities at least 277 women and children rescued last month from jihadist groups Boko Haram and the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP).
“We are handing over a total of 277 women and children. These are people we encountered during our operations and they were apparently held against their will,” Maj. Gen. Waidi Shuaibu, commander of Operation Hadi Kai in Maiduguri, told authorities in Nigeria’s Borno state on Thursday.
“Upon arrival at the barracks, they underwent a preliminary medical examination to check their health and were given food,” he added.
The group of rescued people included 128 women and 149 children.
A Nigerian army source, who asked to remain anonymous, confirmed to the EFE news agency that rescue operations took place in several parts of Borno state last month, where the military also “neutralized” “dozens of terrorists.”
“We will continue the fight until the north (of Nigeria) is free of terrorists,” the source said.
North-eastern Nigeria has been the target of Boko Haram attacks since 2009, but violence intensified in 2016 with the emergence of its splinter group ISWAP.
Both groups seek to create an Islamic state in Nigeria, a country with a Muslim majority in the north and a predominantly Christian country in the south.
Boko Haram and ISWAP have killed more than 35,000 people and displaced about 2.7 million, mostly in Nigeria but also in neighboring countries such as Cameroon, Chad and Niger, according to the government and the United Nations.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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