Army troops rescue four kidnap victims in Zamfara and Kebbi
- Troops of Operation Fansan Yamma freed four people held by kidnappers in two states on Wednesday.
- Two were rescued from farmland in Maru, Zamfara; two others between Bena and Sawade in Kebbi.
- The Army said patrols will continue across the North-West to keep criminal groups on the back foot.
Soldiers have rescued four people from kidnappers in Zamfara and Kebbi states, the Army said on Thursday, in two separate operations carried out on Wednesday, October 21.
The troops are from Sector 2 of Operation Fansan Yamma, the military operation covering the North-West. The spokesman for the 8 Division, Sector 2, Lt Col Olaniyi Osoba, disclosed the rescues.
In Zamfara, the soldiers freed Mansur Shehu, 25, and Kadijat Haruna, 49, from a farmland in Binoni Marafa, in Maru Local Government Area. According to the Army, the troops moved after a report of an attack on the farm, which lies across a river.
In Kebbi, the troops rescued Jimoh Su-Arege, 35, and Kalahe Danjuma, 41, between Bena and Sawade. Osoba said the operation followed information that suspected terrorists were moving with kidnapped victims from Dipindu village in Danko-Wasagu Local Government Area.
The two Kebbi victims were later handed over to the Seriki of Dipindu, a traditional titleholder in the area, according to the spokesman.
Why it matters
Kidnapping for ransom has made farming, trading and travelling risky for many families across Zamfara, Kebbi and neighbouring states. Each rescue eases the fear in communities where people have been forced off their land or off the roads.
Osoba said troops have stepped up patrols and surveillance in the areas they cover, to limit the movement of criminal groups and stop further attacks. He restated the military's commitment to protecting lives and property in communities facing kidnapping and other security threats in the North-West.
The Army described the operations as part of its continuing push to rescue abducted persons, disrupt criminal activity and restore calm in the two states.
None of the reports said whether anyone was arrested in connection with the abductions, or whether ransom was paid.
What happens next
The military says patrols and surveillance will continue across the affected communities. Residents in Zamfara and Kebbi can expect more troop movement along rural roads and near farmlands as the operation presses on.
