Troops rescue 8 women, 6 children after raids on Boko Haram camps

Eight women and six children have regained their freedom after Nigerian Army troops raided some Boko Haram camps in Borno State.

Soldiers of 152 Task Force Battalion, under 21 Special Armoured Brigade, came in contact with terrorists during clearance operations in Ngaba village on Wednesday, June 26, 2019.

The operations were conducted in conjunction with Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) members, according to a statement signed by the Acting Director of Army Public Relations, Colonel Sagir Musa.

"The sudden attack of terrorists' camps, simultaneous and swift employment of voluminous coordinated fire power bombardments led to serious destruction of the terrorists' camps, which forced the criminals to flee their hideouts in disarray, while an unconfirmed number of the bandits were effectively extirpated," the statement read.

The 14 captives were freed from the terrorists' makeshift camps that were also completely destroyed. Troops also recovered three AK-47 rifles, five bicycles, and one Boko Haram flag from the camps.

"The liberated women and children will be handed over to the appropriate agency for further necessary action," Col. Musa said.

Troops of 26 Task Force Brigade located in Gwoza also killed one Boko Haram terrorist and destroyed some camps while conduction clearance operations from Southern Borno axis to Agapalwa village and surrounding localities on Wednesday.

Since Boko Haram's insurgency escalated in 2009, it has killed around 30,000 people and displaced millions in the northeast region, with its operations also extending to border countries like Cameroon, Chad and Niger.

Even though the powers of the Abubakar Shekau-led main faction of Boko Haram has been on the wane in the past couple of years, another faction, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), has grown in influence and carried out several savage attacks on military bases since last year.