LAGOS: At least 15 people kidnapped by gunmen in Nigeria's northern state of Kaduna have been rescued, according to an official.
The victims were rescued by police operatives on Thursday at different locations in the Chikun area of the state, Samuel Aruwan, a commissioner for internal security and home affairs in the state, told Xinhua news agency on Saturday.
Three women among the rescued victims had spent four months in "the kidnappers' den" after being abducted on November 18, 2020, said Aruwan.
"Following a tip-off on Thursday, revealing that the hostages had been sighted, police personnel mobilised to the area and engaged the bandits, forcing them to abandon their captives, " he said.
In another operation, the commissioner said the police rescued 12 victims who had been abducted following a recent attack by gunmen along the Kaduna-Birnin Gwari highway.
According to him, police operatives on a routine patrol found the 12 victims in a Buruku forest and eventually rescued them while the gunmen escaped.
Aruwan said the troops were still trailing other fleeing gunmen to areas said to be their enclave.
Nigeria has witnessed a series of attacks by armed groups in recent months.
On March 12, unidentified gunmen attacked the Federal College of Forestry Mechanization in Mando area and abducted a number of students.
On February 26, 279 school girls were abducted from the Government Girls Science Secondary School in Zamfara state. They were released on March 2.
In January, at least 27 students were kidnapped from a boarding school in Kagara.
They were released on February 17.
In 2014, 276 schoolgirls were kidnapped by the Islamist Boko Haram terrorists in Chibok town, which drew global attention and condemnation.
More than 110 of those girls are still unaccounted for, while the remaining either escaped, freed by the military or died.