TheCable

The Nigerian Army says the abducted Kuriga students were rescued in Zamfara state.

The schoolchildren were taken hostage on March 7 when bandits attacked the Kuriga community in Kaduna state.

Sani Abdullahi, a teacher at Government Secondary School Kuriga, had said 287 students were missing after the attack.

Speaking after their release on Sunday, Edward Buba, director of defence media operations, Defence Headquarters (DHQ), said 137 students — 76 female and 61 male —were rescued in Zamfara.

Buba said they “would be conveyed and handed over to the Kaduna state government for further action”.

“Relatedly, it would be recalled that on 21 Mar 24, troops equally rescued 16 pupils (Almajiris) with a woman taken hostage in Gada LGA of Sokoto state,” he added.

“These hostages were handed over to the Sokoto state government. These efforts demonstrate the armed forces resolve to find other innocent hostages and track down the terrorists that perpetrated these crimes.

“These efforts would continue until other hostages are found and the terrorists arrested, tried, and brought to justice by Nigerian law.”

Buba said troops are employing similar efforts to track down the culprits responsible for the killing of 17 army personnel in Okuama, Delta state.