The Nigerian army said on Tuesday it had rescued 11 kidnapping victims during a late-night operation from Tuesday to Wednesday along the Kaduna-Abuja highway.
The operation would have foiled an attempt by armed groups to move the captives through a wooded area under cover of darkness.
These are five men, three women and three children who had been held captive for 92 days after being kidnapped in the community of Gada Mallam Maman, Kaduna State, in October.
Troops at Forward Operating Base Doka spotted the group on January 26 using long-range surveillance equipment, according to an army statement.
The soldiers intervened after seeing the kidnappers escorting their victims along a path in the bush.
Kidnappings for ransom have become a major security issue in northwest and central Nigeria, particularly along the Kaduna-Abuja Highway, a major transportation corridor connecting the commercial capital to the Federal Capital Territory.
The security situation in Nigeria is being closely monitored by US President Donald Trump, who launched an airstrike on Christmas Day to denounce what he describes as persecution of Christians. Last week, armed bandits kidnapped more than 160 worshipers in two churches in Kaduna.
