Nigerian army announced that released 178 hostages of Boko Haram

New offensive against Boko Haram in Nigeria. The Nigerian army announced that freed 178 hostages held by the Islamist group. Of this total, there are 101 children and 67 women according to a military spokesman who also said that the operation had taken place in the state of Borno, heart of the Islamist insurgency.

A Boko Haram commander was also captured and several jihadists camps scrapped. The Nigerian military claims to have conducted air strikes around the village of Bita while the Islamists were preparing to launch a new offensive.

These actions come as the new Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has erected a priority the fight against Boko Haram since his inauguration in late May. A multinational force of 8700 men is up with Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Benin even though his appointment scheduled July 31 was delayed.

Symbol of strength of Boko Haram, the 276 high school students from Chibok remain unaccounted for their spectacular kidnapping in April 2014. Only 57 of them managed to escape.

Source : Euronews