SEVEN more students of the Federal University Gusau, Zamfara State, have been rescued from their captors by the Joint Task Force of Operation Hadarin Daji.
The operatives had rescued six of the students (all females) shortly after bandits attacked their hostels in a community near the university on Friday, September 22.
According to Zagazola Makama, a publication specializing in counter-insurgency in the Lake Chad region, the seven students and three other persons were rescued.
This brings to 13 students rescued by the security forces among those abducted from the institution last Friday.
The ICIR reported how bandits invaded the private hostels of the students in the Sabon-Gida community of the Bungudu Local Government Area of the state. Sabon-Gida is a few meters away from the university.
Although sources within the school informed The ICIR that the bandits had abducted no fewer than 25 students from their hostels, the Nigerian Army engaged in a face-off with the bandits, resulting in the rescue of the first six students.
The names of the freed students are as follows, according to Zagazola Makama:
- Rukayya Sani Batola: Education Chemistry -200 Level -Zamfara
- Merry Monday: MicroBiology-300 Level
- Maryam Salawuddeen: Accounting-300 Level-Osun
- Salamatu Jummai Dahiru: MicroBiology -200 Level
- Fiddausi Abdulazeez: Education Biology -200 Level
- Amamatullahi Asabe Dahiru: Education Chemistry-200 Level
- Ketora Bulus: Education: Physics- 100 Level -Kaduna
- Felicia Sunday: Computer Science- 200 Level-Osun
- Jamila Ahmad: BCH-200 Level – Kogi
- Aisha Aminu Ujong: Edu Physics- Graduated-Cross River
- Mariya Abdulrahman Usman: English-400 Level-Katsina
- Usaina Abdulrahman Education: English-100 Level-Katsina
- Saadatu Aminu Abubakar: Education Biology
The ICIR earlier reported how President Bola Tinubu ordered security operatives to rescue the students immediately.
In a statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity Ajuri Ngelale on Sunday, Sept. 24, the president condoled the families of the affected students and assured them that no effort would be spared in securing their release.
“There is no moral justification for such heinous crimes against innocent victims whose only ‘offence’ was their pursuit of quality education,” part of the statement read.
Tinubu also noted that his government was determined to ensure the safety of educational institutions and rid them of terrorists.
Usman Mustapha is a solution journalist with International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: umustapha@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M