The National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, has reiterated the resolve of the Federal Government to intensify its offensive against terrorists, bandits, kidnappers, and other criminal groups terrorizing the peace of the country.

Ribadu said there will no longer be a safe haven for criminal groups holding Nigerians hostage.

The NSA, who made the declaration while presenting 128 civilians rescued from bandit captivity in Kaura Namoda, Zamfara State, said the victims, comprising men, women, and children, were freed in two waves of military and intelligence operations earlier this month.

“Let me be unequivocally clear: this work will continue. There will be no respite in our operations. There will be no safe haven for those who terrorize our citizens. We will hunt them, we will find them, and we will bring them to justice – or they will meet the same fate as the many kingpins already neutralized by our forces,” Ribadu said.

The NSA showered encomiums on the military, police, and intelligence community for their role in the rescue, describing their efforts as a “crushing blow to the networks of terror that seek to undermine our peace”.

Ribadu, who assured Nigerians that the government of President Bola Tinubu would sustain both kinetic and non-kinetic measures in the fight against insecurity, said, “This government has, in recent months, reunited mothers with their children, husbands with their wives, and communities with their loved ones. Each rescue is a victory for the Nigerian people,” Ribadu noted.

The NSA said that beyond the rescue, the victims would receive trauma care and psychosocial support before reuniting with their families, insisting that “healing is as important as the rescue itself.”

The NSA, while urging citizens to remain vigilant and support security forces with timely information, said their resilience and cooperation were key to defeating criminal networks.

The rescue, according to him, was not an isolated event but part of a broader security strategy designed to dismantle bandit groups and restore peace across Nigeria.

Earlier, the National Coordinator, National Counter-Terrorism Centre (NCTC), Maj. Gen. Adamu Laka, explained that the victims were freed during coordinated security operations carried out in two phases earlier in August.

According to him, the first group of victims — 42 individuals comprising 14 males, 27 females, and a toddler — were rescued on Wednesday, August 14. The second group, comprising 88 individuals made up of 34 males and 54 females, was freed on Monday, August 19.

“Unfortunately, among the second group, we lost one of the children due to illness, likely from the fatigue they suffered while in captivity.

“In addition, one of the women gave birth prematurely after the rescue, and the baby is currently receiving medical attention,” Laka added.

He noted that since their rescue, the victims have been under the care of the ONSA, where they received psychological support, medical treatment, and rehabilitation.

“With their recovery process ongoing, we are now handing them over to the Zamfara State Government for reintegration with their families and communities,” Laka added.

The Minister of State for Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction, Tanko Sununu, commended the efforts of the government and security agencies in rescuing the victims.

Sununu, however, advised the freed victims to see their freedom as an opportunity to strive for their future, urging them to embrace education. (Daily Sun)