The Federal Government might be mulling the idea of seeking the expertise of some foreign mercenaries to facilitate the release of passengers of the Abuja-Kaduna train abducted by terrorists on March 28, news reports have indicated on Monday.
So far, efforts made by the government to release the victims have proved abortive, forty-nine days after the attack.
It was gathered that the government may have hit deadlock in the negotiations with the leaders of the terror gang as the gang insisted on a swap of their men in custody with the passengers kidnapped during an attack on the train at Katari, Kaduna.
An internal source privy to the matter said the abductors had told the government firmly about their stance on swapping their victims with some of their gang members in the custody of security agencies.
This, according to the source prompted the government to seek foreign assistance, noting that the United States, United Kingdom and other Western countries have the expertise to assist the country.
“The negotiation has literally broken down; the bandits/terrorists are still insisting on swapping their commanders in custody with the abducted passengers. The government is seeking foreign assistance to resolve the deadlock,” the source was quoted to have said.
Recall that the terrorists on March 28, had bombed the Abuja-Kaduna rail tracks, attacking a train filled with passengers.
About eight persons were killed and 26 others injured when gunmen bombed the rail track and fired gunshots at the Kaduna-bound train.
As of press time, the gunmen had released three hostages, including the Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture, Alwan Hassan; Sadique, son of Ango Abdullahi, convener of the Northern Elders Forum and a pregnant woman.
However, about 68 passengers of the train are still unaccounted for.
