The Nigerian Army says it has rescued over 100 elderly men, women and children, many of whom were turned into slaves – forced to work in farms under life-threatening conditions and penurious wages by Boko Haram terrorists.

In a statement on Wednesday, Col. Timothy Antigha, Deputy Director of Public Relations, 8 Division, Nigerian Army, disclosed that, in continuation of Operation Deep Punch II, designed to smoke out Boko Haram terrorists inhabiting remote islands in Lake Chad basin lying within Nigerian territory, troops of the Division on Operation Lafiya Dole, supported by soldiers of the Armed Forces Strike Group, have inflicted heavy casualty on Boko Haram terrorists, leading to the killing of 20 terrorists and the killing of 17 others.

He said: “The Nigerian Air Force supported troops throughout the operation with Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance assets and also provided timely air interdiction, as well as close air support.”

According to the statement, the operation, which commenced about two weeks ago, was proceeded by coordinated air and artillery bombardment of islands and localities occupied by the terrorists, from where they reportedly sneaked into Magumeri, Kauram and other locations to loot property and attack security personnel and villagers.

The recent operation also led to the recovery of abandoned vehicles, arms and ammunition, as well as assorted equipment.

The troops also recovered one Mercedes Benz truck, three Toyota Land Cruiser gun trucks, five AK-47 riffles, three Fabrique Nationals riffles, two G3 riffles and one Pump Action riffle. Other items included: one Rocket Propelled Grenade tube, two bombs, two Very High Frequency radios and one Night Vision Goggle.

“The troops also recovered 55 rounds of 5.56 X 45mm ammunition, five Bangalore Torpedo, two 120mm Mortar bombs, 1,000 rounds of 7.62mm Ball Metal Link ammunition, 55 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition and 108 rounds of 12.7mm ammunition with links, as well as two memory cards, two Hydraulic jacks and a 1.5 Amph battery.

“It is heartwarming to note that we have not lost any life among our troops so far. However, six soldiers sustained various degrees of injuries and have since been evacuated for prompt medical attention,” the statement read.

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