Nigerian troops rescue 14 more hostages from Boko Haram

ABUJA, Nigeria, April 11 (UPI) -- Nigerian troops rescued 14 more hostages from Boko Haram captivity in an ongoing campaign to capture territory from the Islamist militant group.

Troops on patrol in northeastern Nigeria's Borno state conducted the rescue operation in the village of Namilia, where they found the captives, mostly women and children.

They also recovered a cache of equipment which included motorcycles, communications equipment and Dane guns, an obsolete musket-style firearm now locally manufactured, the army spokesman Sani Usman said in a statement Sunday. The discoveries of outdated weapons is an indication Boko Haram no longer possesses a supply of AK-47 automatic rifles and other modern and more useful armaments.

In recent weeks the army has announced a number of successes in rescuing hostages and reclaiming territory once held by Boko Haram, to the point the Nigerian government expressed its confidence the group has been reduced to hit-and-run and terrorist actions. The goal of Boko Haram, an anti-Western and pro-Islamic State organization, has been the establishment of a caliphate in Nigeria. More than 20,000 people have been killed since the group began operations in 2009.