Nigerian forces free more than 180 hostages, say police

Nigerian police have announced that at least 187 people including babies have been freed in the country’s troubled north, one of the country's largest liberations of kidnap victims

LAGOS, Nigeria -- In one of the largest liberations of kidnap victims, at least 187 people including babies have been freed in the country's troubled north, police announced.

Nigerian security forces rescued the hostages from a forest in Zamfara state where they had been held for many weeks, Zamfara police spokesperson Mohammed Shehu said in a statement. He said they were released “unconditionally,” indicating that no ransoms were paid.

The hostages in Zamfara were freed on Thursday as a result of “extensive search and rescue operations,” and were helped by sweeping security measures including a shutdown of mobile phone networks and restrictions on gatherings and movements in Zamfara state, Shehu said.

“The new security measures in the state have been yielding tremendous results, as they have led to the successful rescue of many abducted victims that run into hundreds, and (they) have been reunited with their respective families,” Shehu said. Nigeria's security agencies will continue working "to ensure the return of lasting peace and security in the state,” he said in the statement.