TRIPOLI, Oct. 24 (Xinhua) -- The Libyan National Army (LNA), which controls eastern Libya, announced on Friday that it has freed several Nigerien nationals who were kidnapped by an armed group from Niger 16 months ago.

In a statement on its Facebook page, the LNA's War Information Division said a special operation was conducted to rescue the Nigeriens abducted by an outlaw armed group near Al-Qatrun in southwest Libya, approximately 180 km from the Libyan-Nigerien border.

The statement did not specify the exact number of those freed, but an attached video showed five individuals disembarking from an LNA military aircraft. In the footage, one of the freed captives said that they had been abducted by the Patriotic Front for Justice (FPJ), an armed group operating in Niger, on June 21 of last year.

The FPJ is a rebel movement in Niger that opposes the ruling military council, which seized power following the 2023 coup that ousted President Mohamed Bazoum. ■