Nigeria frees 308 hostages held by jihadist gunmen
Nigerian security forces freed 308 people who had been held captive by jihadist gunmen for six months in the country's northwest. The rescue, carried out Thursday across two separate locations, was described by the government as the largest single-day rescue operation in the country's history. Freed captives have begun speaking publicly about their ordeal.
Nigerian security forces freed 308 people on Thursday who had been abducted six months ago by jihadist gunmen in two separate locations in the country's northwest. The operation marked one of the largest hostage rescues carried out in the region in recent memory, according to officials familiar with the effort.
The government described the rescue as the largest single-day operation of its kind in the country's history. In the days since, some of those freed have begun speaking publicly about the conditions of their captivity, offering an account of an ordeal that stretched across half a year under armed groups' control.
Nigeria's northwest has faced recurring waves of kidnappings carried out by armed groups operating in the region, with abductions often targeting villagers, students and travelers. Authorities have periodically launched operations aimed at securing the release of captives, though the scale of Thursday's rescue stood out among recent efforts reported by officials.
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