Nigerian army rescues 241 hostages from Boko Haram

By Adam Abu-bashal

ABUJA, Nigeria (AA) - Nigerian troops have rescued 241 hostages abducted by the Boko Haram terrorist group in the country’s northeast, an official said Thursday.

Defense Ministry spokesman John Enenche told reporters that a clash took place between the army and Boko Haram in the Gamboru region of Borno State.

Enenche said that following the clash, the army rescued 136 children and 105 women in an operation against the terror group.

Fourteen Boko Haram members were neutralized during the operation, he said, adding a remarkable amount of ammunition was also seized.

He stressed that the army suffered no losses or injuries during the operation.

No information about when the hostages were abducted was disclosed.

Boko Haram launched a bloody insurgency in 2009 in northeastern Nigeria but later spread its atrocities to neighboring Niger, Chad and Cameroon, prompting a military response.

More than 30,000 people have been killed and nearly 3 million displaced in a decade of Boko Haram's terrorist activities in Nigeria, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Violence committed by Boko Haram has affected some 26 million people in the Lake Chad region and displaced 2.6 million others, according to the UN Refugee Agency.

*Writing by Sena Guler