ONE student has been confirmed dead following the attack by terrorists on Federal Government College, Birnin Yawuri, in Kebbi State.
Two other students and two teachers were rescued from the terrorists by troops of the Nigerian Army.
The ICIR had reported how the terrorists stormed the school on Thursday morning with motorcycles from the neighbouring Rijau forest.
The terrorists were said to have overpowered the mobile policemen guarding the school, killing one before gaining entrance into the compound.
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But in a statement released on Friday, Director Army Public Relations Onyeama Nwachukwu said troops of a military task force known as ‘Operation Hadarin Daji’ had rescued two students and two teachers from the terrorists.
“The rescue followed an initial encounter with the abductors in the early hours of today 18 June 2021 after trailing the kidnappers from Yawuri through Riyao to Sombo community, where the kidnappers who had split into two groups fled, with one group conveying the abducted children, while the second group conveyed rustled cattle.
“The land troops in conjunction with elements of the Nigerian Air Force, who provided close air support during the rescue mission intercepted the two groups at about 2.30 am and engaged them in a firefight leading to the successful rescue of the teachers and students.
“The troops also recovered 800 cattle rustled by the bandits” the statement said.
While explaining that one of the students, a girl, died from exhaustion, Nwachukwu added that the soldiers were still on the heels of the terrorists so as to rescue the remaining hostages who still in captivity.
He disclosed that the rescued teachers and students would be handed over to the Kebbi State Government.
When contacted, Spokesperson of the Kebbi State Police Command Nafiu Abubakar told The ICIR that the police were still on the trail of the kidnappers.
“We are on it,” he said.
“You can use the statement from their own side,” Abubakar added, when asked to confirm the statement by the Nigerian Army.
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