Troops of the Joint Task Force (JTF) and Operation Hadin Kai have rescued 74 members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) from a possible abduction by terrorists along the Buratai–Kamuya road in Borno State.
According to Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency expert focused on the Lake Chad region, the corps members, 36 males and 38 females, were rescued around 9:05 p.m. on Tuesday after their vehicles broke down near a notorious kidnapping hotspot.
The publication reported that a military patrol team was swiftly deployed after a closed-circuit television (CCTV) system monitored by troops detected suspicious movement involving three buses at the location.
“On arrival, troops discovered 74 NYSC members stranded after their vehicles developed mechanical faults,” the report stated.
“The troops immediately rescued them to prevent a likely abduction attempt by Boko Haram or ISWAP elements operating in the area.”
Zagazola added that the corps members had earlier been escorted from Maiduguri to Damaturu by troops of the 7 Division Garrison.
However, after arriving in Damaturu, they reportedly failed to inform Sector 2 Headquarters before continuing their journey to Hawul Local Government Area without an armed escort.
The rescued NYSC members were currently being accommodated at the Buratai military base pending further arrangements for their safe movement.
Last year, gunmen abducted an NYSC member, Chiamaka Obi, along the Niger–Onitsha Expressway in Niger State.
Obi, from Edenta in Okwu Etiti, Orsu local government area of Imo State, was said to have been kidnapped while returning from Kebbi State at the end of her service year.
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