An elite US special forces unit have successfully rescued an American hostage from kidnappers in West Africa.
Philip Walton (27), who lived on the border between Niger and Nigeria with his wife and daughter, was abducted on the 26th of October. Due to concerns of the kidnappers quickly bringing Walton far away, US officials and their African counterparts knew they had to act immediately.
The highly trained Seal Team 6 carried out a ‘precision’ rescue operation in Nigeria, killing six out of the seven captors ‘before they knew what happened’ according to ABC News. Walton was successfully rescued and reunited with his family.
Donald Trump tweeted that the rescues was a ‘big win for our very elite US special forces’ while Mike Pompeo promised that ‘we will never abandon any American hostage’. High stakes rescue operations have a success rate of just 30%, and many hostages can be captive for years before military intervention.
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