Posted by Samuel on Sat 27th Feb, 2021 - tori.ng
The IG also disclosed that the military, police and the Department of State Services operatives have commenced a coordinated search towards the rescue of the schoolgirls.
Mohammed Adamu, the Inspector-General of Police, has dispatched two helicopters and operatives for the rescue of about 317 abducted schoolgirls in Jangebe, Zamfara State, The PUNCH reports.
The IG also disclosed that the military, police and the Department of State Services operatives have commenced a coordinated search towards the rescue of the schoolgirls.
Suspected bandits in Hilux vehicles and a number of motorcycles had, on Friday, kidnapped over 300 students of Government Secondary School, Jangebe in the Talatar Mafara Local Government Area of Zamfara.
A statement by the force spokesman, Frank Mba, titled, ‘Police commence coordinated search and rescue operation for abducted Zamfara schoolgirls,’ said the deployment was in addition to the personnel of Operation Puff Adder II earlier drafted to Zamfara State to support efforts by the command to combat banditry, kidnappings and other related crimes.
Mba said the rescue operation, “involves the deployment of both ground and aerial assets, aimed at locating and rescuing the students of the Government Girls Secondary School, Jangebe, Zamfara State abducted in the early hours of Friday, February 26, 2021.”
“To ensure the success of the ongoing operation, the Inspector-General of Police, M.A. Adamu, has ordered the immediate deployment of two operational surveillance helicopters in Zamfara State,” the statement added.
While condemning the incident, the IG gave the assurance that “the police and other security forces will not relent until the abducted pupils are successfully rescued and reunited with their families.”
Bandits have been on the rampage in the northern part of Nigeria, kidnapping for ransoms, killing, pillaging and displacing many from their homes.
Only last Wednesday, bandits invaded the Government Science School, Kagara in the Rafi Local Government Area of Niger State, whisking away 42 schoolchildren and officials.
The Jangebe abduction of 317 schoolgirls happened in Zamfara when efforts to rescue the Niger schoolchildren had not yielded a positive result.
In December last year, more than 300 schoolboys were kidnapped by bandits from a school in Kankara, Katsina, the home state of the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.).
The abduction took place while the President was in the state on a visit. The schoolboys were released following a negotiation with the bandits.