Trump thanks special forces for rescuing a U.S. citizen held hostage in Nigeria ahead of his 4 rallies in Pennsylvania U.S. forces early Saturday rescued an American citizen who’d been held hostage for several days by a group of armed men in Northern Nigeria, the Pentagon said. “This American citizen is safe and is now in the care of the U.S. Department of State,” Jonathan Hoffman, chief Pentagon spokesman, said in a statement. No U.S military personnel were injured during the rescue, said Hoffman, who didn’t identify the individual. ABC News reported on Oct. 28 that Philip Walton, 27, an American missionary, had been abducted from his home in a small southern Niger village, close to the border with Nigeria. President Donald Trump, in a tweet, called it a “big win for our very elite U.S. Special Forces” and said more details would follow.