U.S. forces conduct hostage rescue mission in northern Nigeria

• "This American citizen is safe and is now in the care of the U.S. Department of State. No U.S military personnel were injured during the operation."
• "We appreciate the support of our international partners in conducting this operation. The United States will continue to protect our people and our interests anywhere in the world.”

The big picture: Earlier this week armed kidnappers abducted a U.S. missionary in the West African nation of Niger and then transported him to Nigeria, where they demanded a ransom from the man’s father, according to AP. Nigeria has experienced a recent uptick in the number of attacks by extremist groups linked to the Islamic State and al-Qaeda, per AP.