More than 300 people who had been kidnapped across Nigeria have been freed in an intelligence and security operation, the government has announced. “It was the largest rescue operation ever carried out on the same day by Nigeria’s joint security team,” the statement added. The government in Kwara State, near the border with Benin, welcomed the rescue in a social media post, local channel Arise News reported. Soft targets, including schools, churches and mosques, particularly in vulnerable rural communities with limited state security, have been particularly at risk. Last month, security services freed at least 40 students and teachers kidnapped in May from the southern state of Oyo.