According to Pentagon, US forces have rescued an American citizen that was taken hostage by armed men recently in Niger and held in northern Nigeria.
While talking about the development, the spokesman of Pentagon, Jonathan Hoffman said: “U.S. forces conducted a hostage rescue operation during the early hours of 31 October in Northern Nigeria to recover an American citizen held hostage by a group of armed men. This American citizen is safe and is now in the care of the U.S. Department of State. No U.S military personnel were injured during the operation.
“We appreciate the support of our international partners in conducting this operation. The United States will continue to protect our people and our interests anywhere in the world.”
A US official who was privy to the details of the mission told CNN that the rescue mission lasted several hours and was carried by the Navy’s elite SEAL Team 6 who were conveyed to the region by Air Force special operations.
According to the official, the US forces who carried out the mission killed six of the seven captors. Also, United States believe the captors have no affiliation with any terror group terrorising the region, and were mere bandits demanding for money.
The State Department confirmed not too long ago that a US citizen was abducted in Niger and local media outlets reported that the abducted US citizen was a male missionary.
The governor of the local region where the citizen was abducted told local media that six men on motorbikes armed with AK-47s got to the man’s property in the village of Massalata, a village close to Nigeria.
The governor, Abdourahamane Moussa, told the media outlets that after the men demanded for money, they carried the American citizen with them and headed towards Nigerian border.
