Police tactical operatives, in collaboration with local vigilantes, have rescued 11 kidnap victims after a gun battle with suspected bandits in Mariga Local Government Area of Niger State.

The development was disclosed in a report by Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency and security analyst covering the Lake Chad region.

According to the report, the operation was launched at about 9:00pm, on July 11 after security operatives received intelligence that suspected armed bandits were moving through the area with abducted victims and rustled cattle.

Makama reported that the joint security team intercepted the suspects near Mangoro Village in Mariga Local Government Area, where a gun battle ensued.

“The security team intercepted the bandits near Mangoro Village in Mariga LGA, where they engaged the criminals in a fierce exchange of gunfire,” the report stated.

The report added that the suspected bandits fled into the surrounding bush after the gun battle, abandoning the kidnapped victims, who were rescued unharmed.

The rescued victims were identified as Alhaji Sale, Muhammadu, Abubakar Ibrahim, Naziru Hamza, Ali Ibrahim, Abubakar Mohd, Ibrahim Abubakar, Dan Asabe Garba, Yunusa Musa, Musa Peter and Bilyaminu Ibrahim, all residents of Beri, Dogon-Fadama and Kagara communities.

Makama further reported that the victims have since been reunited with their families.

He added that security operatives have continued monitoring and combing operations across the area in an effort to apprehend the fleeing suspects and recover the rustled cattle.

Troops of the Nigerian Army have rescued an Assistant Superintendent of Police, ASP, and six other travelers who were abducted by suspected kidnappers on Monday at Sopp village in Riyom Local Government Area of Plateau State.

According to a security source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, troops deployed under Sector 6 of Operation Enduring Peace Operation, OPEP, carried out the successful rescue operation following a swift response to a distress call at about 9:30 p.m. on Monday.

The security source disclosed this on Tuesday, stating that when the deployed troops arrived at the scene, they found a blue Opel Vectra abandoned in the middle of the road with no occupants, prompting an immediate search-and-rescue operation in the surrounding bush.

According to the source, the troops made contact with the suspected kidnappers and engaged them in a firefight, forcing them to flee into the bush and abandon their captives. 

The rescued victims were identified as ASP Babagida Ishaku, Auwulu Haruna, Dung Jerry Dang, Anas Idris, Hussaini Mohammed, Idris Abdullahi, and Mrs Kangyang Sunday.

The victims reportedly told the troops they had boarded the vehicle in Akwanga, Nasarawa State, and were travelling to Jos when they were intercepted and abducted by the gunmen.

The source said all seven victims were rescued unharmed, while efforts have been intensified to track down and apprehend the fleeing suspects.

Troops of the Forward Operating Base, FOB, Tudun Bichi have killed two suspected terrorists during a gun battle in Danko/Wasagu Local Government Area of Kebbi State, while one soldier has been reported missing in action.

Security analyst Zagazola Makama disclosed this in a post on X, citing security sources.

According to the sources, the operation was launched at about 11:20 a.m. on July 13 after troops received intelligence on terrorist activities in Mokurata Village.

The troops moved to the area and engaged the suspected terrorists in a fierce exchange of gunfire, during which two of the suspects were neutralised.

The sources said the troops recovered one motorcycle and a Baofeng handheld radio believed to have been used by the terrorists.

However, one soldier, who was armed with a PKT machine gun and an AK-47 rifle, was reported missing in action during the operation.

The sources added that efforts have been intensified to track down the fleeing terrorists and locate the missing soldier.

“The operation is part of sustained military offensives aimed at denying terrorists freedom of movement across the North-West,” the sources said.