Troops of Operation Forest Sanity of the Nigerian Army have rescued 16 people who were kidnapped by bandits during operations spanning Birnin Gwari-Kaduna Road in Birning Gwari and Igabi Local Government Areas of Kaduna State.
The State Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday.
He said the troops responded to a distress call along the Udawa-Manini axis of the Birnin Gwari-Kaduna Road, during which they foiled the attack and rescued 16 persons in the process.
Aruwan explained that some of the rescued persons who sustained injuries were rushed to hospital for treatment.
Similarly, troops of Operation Forest Sanity responded to another distress call from Gonan Doctor village in Igabi Local Government Area, and laid ambush on bandits crossing point in Maraban Huda village.
During a firefight, one of the bandits was killed by the troops.
During the encounter with the bandits, a kidnapped victim was rescued and was rushed to the Jaji Military Cantonment Hospital for treatment, while one operational motorcycle belonging to the bandits was recovered.
Furthermore, in response to credible intelligence of bandits’ movement around an interstate boundary area, troops of Operation Forest Sanity set up ambush positions around Mangoro general area around Chikun-Birnin Gwari LGA, on the boundary with Shiroro LGA of neighbouring Niger State.
The troops engaged the approaching bandits, and killed two bandits. Also recovered were one AK-47 rifle, one pump action gun, one Improvised Explosive Device, one Baofeng Radio, and 10 motorcycles.