By Emeka Nze
An American citizen held hostage by a group of armed men suspected to be Boko Haram in Northern Nigeria has been rescued by U.S. special military forces, in what President Donald Trump termed a “daring nighttime rescue operation.”
Last night, our Country’s brave warriors rescued an American hostage in Nigeria. Our Nation salutes the courageous soldiers behind the daring nighttime rescue operation and celebrates the safe return of yet another American citizen!
“This American citizen is safe and is now in the care of the U.S. Department of State,” Jonathan Hoffman, chief Pentagon spokesman, said in a statement.
No U.S military personnel were injured during the rescue in the early hours of Saturday morning, said Hoffman.
Trump earlier called it a “big win for our very elite U.S. Special Forces” and said more details would follow.
“Some of our bravest and most skilled warriors rescued a U.S. citizen after a group of armed men took him hostage across the border in Niger,” Secretary of State Michael Pompeo said in a statement.
U.S. authorities didn’t identify the individual. But ABC News reported on Oct. 28 that Philip Walton, 27, an American missionary, had been abducted from his home in a small southern Niger village, close to the border with Nigeria.
-Bloomberg