By ZAGAZOLA MAKAMA

Troops of the Nigerian Army have resumed offensive operations against terrorist enclaves in Katsina State, raiding the hideouts of a notorious bandit leader and rescuing a woman who had been held captive for over two months.

The coordinated assault took place on Saturday morning in Machika and Dankolo villages in Sabuwa Local Government Area, targeting camps belonging to a bandit kingpin identified as Kachalla Muritala.

Zagazola Makama was informed by intelligence sources that the troops engaged the terrorists in a fierce firefight, forcing them to retreat into the surrounding mountains. No casualties were recorded on the part of the military, while three terrorists were reportedly neutralised during the operation.

Following the retreat of the terrorists, the troops destroyed their camps, motorcycles, livestock, and life-support systems to prevent any future reoccupation.

During the mop-up operation, the troops also recovered three motorcycles and made further gains in the Maigora axis. A 40-year-old woman, Mrs. Suliat Adam, an indigene of Dankolo village, who had been abducted along the Funtua–Zaria Road approximately 70 days ago, escaped from a bandit camp in Maigora as a result of an earlier military assault on May 20.

She was subsequently reunion with her family. (Zagazola)