11 passengers kidnapped in the Kaduna train attack on March 28 and released over the weekend have been reunited with their families.
After eleven weeks in captivity, the victims were released by their captors on Friday following a series of negotiations with the Federal Government.
Six women and five men comprise the eleven victims.
Upon their release, the military transported them to Abuja, the nation’s capital, for debriefing before returning them to Kaduna on Monday and delivering them to their families.
One of the victims, a middle-aged woman who sustained severe injuries, was unable to stand on her own due to the traumatic experience she endured while in the terrorists’ custody in the forest.
Amina, the Musawas’ daughter, was among the hostages kidnapped in the Kaduna state train attack on March 28. Nonetheless, the Musawa family is rejoicing as they celebrate Amina’s release.
Although it is a breath of fresh air for Amina, her joy and that of her extended family does not appear to be complete, as her kidnapped husband was not among the first eleven to be released. He and fifty others are still in the forest with their captors.
Amina, along with the other freed passengers, was unwilling to speak camera as they were still in a state of shock from their ordeal in captivity.
However, their relatives, who are evidently pleased with their return, praise the federal government for facilitating the release of the first group of victims.
However, they are saddened by the fact that 50 additional victims of the train attack remain with their captors. For their happiness to be complete, they urged the Federal Government not to rest until all the abductees are freed.
While it may be liberation at last for these eleven passengers, their ordeal at the hands of their kidnappers will be a tragic story that they would not wish to forget, especially since the fate of fifty others remains unknown.