Nigeria’s Minister of Defence, Major General Bashir Magashi (rtd.), on Tuesday has said that the rescue of an American held hostage in Nigeria by US Navy Seal was not a violation to the country’s sovereignty.
According to the minister, the Nigerian government granted the US necessary permission to carry out the military operation.
It would be recalled that the United States Special Military Force successfully rescued an American citizen kidnapped by bandits in the northern part of Nigeria over the weekend.
Speaking to reporters shortly after he defended his Ministry’s budget at the Senate on Tuesday, the minister said Nigeria gave permission to the United States “as a friendly country” almost as soon as it was contacted by the government, ruling out theories that the United States might have violated Nigeria’s sovereignty.
Magashi further said that the country was doing the best it could with what was available to the military to deploy adequate technology in its operations.
Magashi however said Nigeria would explore the current partnership with the United States to tackle insurgency in the country.
