Several hundred individuals, abducted earlier this year by the jihadist group Boko Haram in Borno State, northeastern Nigeria, have been successfully liberated, according to statements from the military and local sources.

Since 2009, a persistent jihadist insurgency, spearheaded first by Boko Haram and subsequently by its rival, the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP), has led to tens of thousands of deaths and displaced millions across the northeast of Africa’s most populous nation.

Mass abductions, frequently followed by demands for ransom, are a common tactic employed by these Islamist factions. Samaila Kaigama, who chairs the Borno South Youth Alliance (BOSYA), reported that his organization facilitated the release of 416 women and children who were kidnapped from Ngoshe.

Tragic loss of two infants

“Their release occurred on Saturday,” Kaigama informed reporters. Senator Mohammed Ali Ndume, representing Borno State, corroborated the liberation.

However, in a separate communication released later that day, the military stated that 360 individuals were freed, not directly by Boko Haram, but rather through a strategic