Nigerian troops have rescued the 31 Kano, Katsina bound passengers kidnapped along the Apata-Obajana road in Kogi State.
Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency expert focused on the Lake Chad region, disclosed this in a post on his X handle on Friday, saying the rescue operation was carried out in collaboration with the police and local hunters.
Makama stated that he was reliably informed by intelligence sources that the incident occurred on May 8, when two Toyota Hiace buses traveling from Lagos to Kano and Katsina, respectively, were attacked by armed hoodlums.
The security expert narrated that the first bus, with registration number DTF 773 XA and driven by Saminu Yahaya, was heading to Kano with 17 passengers, while the second, with registration number KNA 170 XA and driven by Bashir Dahiru, was en route to Katsina with another 17 passengers.
“A distress alert was received from a local hunter, prompting a swift response by the troops, who engaged the assailants in a fierce gun duel, which forced the attackers to abandon 31 of the 38 victims and flee into the forest.
“Four of the rescued passengers sustained machete injuries, while one victim was hit by a bullet in the left thigh. All injured victims were immediately evacuated to a hospital for medical treatment,” Makama said.
He added that efforts to rescue the remaining seven abducted persons have been intensified.
