Nigeria’s military has issued aerial footage said to show Boko Haram militants fleeing during an operation to push them out of the Sambisa Forest region.

According to the army it has rescued up to one thousand abducted woman and children from the hands of the militants during the past week.

Having been taken to a refugee camp the freed women have been describing their ordeal. They said that when they were initially captured, the militants killed men and older boys in front of them.

“They took me so I could marry one of their commanders. When they realised I was pregnant, they said I was impregnated by an infidel and they killed him. ‘Once you deliver in a week’s time we will marry you to our commander,’ they said. I delivered at night and we were rescued by the soldiers the following morning,” said 27-year-old Lami Musa.

Most of the captives including the children had been given little food while being held by Boko Haram and many women had be used as sex slaves or human shields