Renewed security operations in Zamfara has led to the rescue of 12 civilians who were abducted by terrorists and disrupted separate attempts by same bandit groups to hold hostage more victims, the military has said.

Operation conducted on 7 September by troops of Sector 2 Joint Task Force North-West, took place in Kaura Namoda and Tsafe Local Government Areas, leading to the successes.

In the first incident, troops responded to a distress call over the infiltration of terrorists into a residence at Tsohon Tasha in Kaura Namoda.

The troops engaged the attackers, forcing them to flee across a nearby river, abandoning six abducted victims.

Troops evacuated the rescued victims, who were later reunited with their families.

In Tsafe, the troops monitoring terrorist activity along their Main Supply Route, spotted an attempt to intercept a Sharon vehicle at Kwanoni Village.

They swiftly moved to the location and engaged the terrorists, forcing them to abandon the operation and retreat into the adjoining bush. 

Six civilians were subsequently rescued in that operation.

The Joint Task Force said the operations reflected its continued efforts to disrupt terrorist activities and deny armed groups freedom of movement across its area of operations.

It urged residents to continue providing security agencies with timely and relevant information to support ongoing efforts to eliminate terrorist threats in the region.