50 Children Escape After Mass Kidnapping in Nigeria
Fifty of the 315 children kidnapped from a Catholic school in Niger State on Friday have managed to escape.
According to the Christian Association of Nigeria, the children who escaped have already been reunited with their families.
A large military search is still ongoing for the remaining 265 children and 12 teachers who are still missing.
The abduction happened at St Mary’s School in Papiri, Niger State. Armed men reportedly entered the school around 2:00am and took the students and teachers away. Authorities later said the number kidnapped was even higher than the Chibok school abduction in 2014.
Following the incident, several states — including Kebbi, Niger, Katsina, Yobe, and Kwara — ordered schools to shut down for safety. This comes after another kidnapping in Kebbi State on Monday, where 20 students were taken from a boarding school.
In a separate development, 38 people kidnapped from a church service in Kwara State last week were freed on Sunday, though two people were killed during that attack.
Families of the abducted students have been left in deep pain and fear. One woman tearfully told the BBC that her nieces, aged six and 13, were among those taken. Another parent said the situation has left everyone weak and shocked.
Security forces, local vigilantes, and police are searching forests and remote paths believed to be used by the kidnappers.
The Niger State government also said the school had earlier been warned to close boarding activities due to security risks, but the school has not commented on this claim.
Kidnapping for ransom has become a major crisis in many parts of Nigeria. Although paying ransom is now illegal, it has done little to stop criminal groups, commonly called bandits.
President Bola Tinubu has postponed foreign trips, including a G20 meeting, to focus on the security situation.
Meanwhile, international debates continue, as some foreign figures claim Christians are being specially targeted in Nigeria. The Nigerian government strongly denies this, saying terrorists attack people of all religions.
Nigeria still battles jihadist groups in the north-east and clashes between farmers and herders in the central region. Experts say many of these conflicts are more about land and resources than religion.
The 2014 Chibok incident – where Boko Haram kidnapped 276 girls – remains one of the worst school abductions in Nigeria’s history. Many of those girls escaped or were freed, but about 100 are still missing.
Source: BBC
