Troops of Operation Hadin Kai have reportedly rescued 12 teenage girls abducted by fighters of the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) in Mussa district, Askira/Uba LGA of Borno state.
The girls were seized on November 23 while harvesting crops on their farms, an attack that forced several residents to flee to nearby communities.
According to Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency publication that cited security sources, the rescue operation was carried out on Saturday. It remains unclear whether any ransom was paid.
The girls were identified as:
Fatima Shaibu (17), Fatima Umaru (15), Hauwa Abubakar (18), Saliha Muhammed (15), Sadiya Umaru (17), Amira Babel (15), Zara Adamu (17), Nana Shaibu (15), Zainab Musa (18), Zainab Muhammed (17), Jamila Saidu (15) and Hauwa Hamidu (17).
They have been moved to a military facility for medical examination and profiling and will be reunited with their families afterwards.
Northern Nigeria has witnessed a surge in violent attacks in recent weeks, including two major assaults targeting schoolchildren.
In Borno, ISWAP ambushed a military convoy, capturing Brigadier General M. Uba alive before he was later executed by the terrorists.
Zamfara, Sokoto and Yobe states have also recorded multiple abductions and killings.
More than 200 schoolchildren were recently kidnapped from schools in Niger and Kebbi states, while 38 worshippers were abducted in a church in Kwara during a livestreamed service.
Days after the Niger abduction, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) said about 50 students had escaped, but at least 250 are still believed to be in captivity.
In contrast, all 24 schoolgirls kidnapped in Kebbi were freed on November 25, and the 38 worshippers taken in Kwara have also regained their freedom.