Nigeria: army rescues 247 civilians, capture 77 terrorists

The Troops of the Nigerian Army have rescued 247 captives from the men of the Boko Haram Sect in Borno State.
The Acting Director, Army Public Relations, Col. Sani Usman, said in a statement on Wednesday that captives were rescued by the troops of the 81 Battalion, the 251 Task Force Battalion, and 25 Task Force Brigade on May 31, 2016
Usman said that the troops rescued 157 persons comprising 47 women, 91 children, and 19 men who were said to have been escaping from the captivity of the Boko Haram at Gombiri Village.
He said that the rescued persons were being screened and interrogated to ascertain their true status.
He said that 79 persons comprising 12 men, 24 women, 31 children and 12 infants who were rescued claimed that they were held by the insurgents at Ngwalimiri village but escaped from the location.
Usman also said the freed captives were being screened for onward movement to the camp for Internally Displaced Persons for rehabilitation.
He added that another patrol team of the Brigade rescued 11 captives comprising four men, two women and five children who were said to have fled the terrorists’ hideout at Uvaha.
He said that the troops of the Operation Lafiya Dole collaborated with their counterparts of the Multinational Joint Task Force in the clearance operations against the Boko haram insurgents in which several people were rescued, some of the insurgents killed and equipment recovered from them.
Usman said that a soldier sustained a head injury in an encounter with the insurgents at Muotu, while five Boko Haram members were killed.
He added that the troops of the 28 Task Force Brigade also cleared Bulajani, Mulgwo and Muotu villages of the remnants of the insurgents during an operation to open the Bitta-Maiduguri Road to commuters.
The Acting Army Spokesman said that 77 insurgents surrendered to the troops of the 122 Task Force Battalion same day.