Nigerian Army rescues 50 pupils from Yobe secondary school abducted by Boko Haram earlier this week

NIGERIAN Army troops have rescued 50 pupils from the Government Girls Science Technical College (GGSTC) Dapchi in Yobe State who were kidnapped by Boko Haram earlier this week during a raid on the town.

On Monday night, the school was attacked by the terrorists, who abducted some of the pupils in what was reminiscent of the kidnapping of the Chibok girls in 2014. President Muhammadu Buhari immediately directed Nigeria's security agencies to take immediate charge of the situation and it appears that troops have now found the girls and rescued them.

Abdullahi Bego, a spokesman for Governor Ibrahim Gaidam of Yobe State, said: “The Yobe State government hereby informs the public that some of the girls at Government Girls Science Technical College (GGSTC) whose school was attacked by Boko Haram terrorists last Monday have been rescued by gallant officers and men of the Nigerian Army from the terrorists who abducted them. The rescued girls are now in the custody of the Nigerian Army.

“We will provide more details about their number and condition in due course. Governor Ibrahim Gaidam, who is very grateful for the gallantry and hard work of the officers and men of the Nigerian Army involved in the operation, is monitoring the situation closely and will make a statement in due course.”

Dapchi is 100 kilometres from Damaturu, the Yobe State capital and is 75 kilometres south of the Nigerian border with Niger Republic. Information minister Alhaji Lai Mohammed revealed that following the abduction, President Buhari also directed the defence minister Mansur Dan-Ali and the foreign minister Geoffrey Onyeama, to proceed to Yobe State on a fact-finding mission today.