Armed attackers have kidnapped at least 315 people, including students and teachers, from a Catholic school in central Nigeria. It is believed to be one of the biggest mass kidnappings in the country’s recent history.
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CN) reported that 303 students and 12 teachers were evacuated from St. Mary’s School in Papiri, Niger State.
According to the report of the British media BBC, according to the new figures, the number of abducted people has surpassed the number of the infamous chin abduction of 2014 (276 students).
Police said armed assailants entered the school around 2 a.m. local time on Friday and abducted the students.
Local resident Dominic Adamu told the BBC, ‘My two daughters attend that school. They were not kidnapped. But those whose children are victims of abduction, all are mentally broken… The incident has shocked everyone.’
On the other hand, a woman said in a tearful voice that her two nieces (aged 6 and 13) had been kidnapped. “I just want them to come home,” he said.
Police said security forces are combing the forest area to find the abductees.
According to the report of the news agency AFP, it was initially reported that 215 people had been kidnapped, but later it was learned that 315 people had been kidnapped.
Niger state authorities say all residential schools were ordered closed after receiving intelligence warnings of a possible attack. But St Mary’s School flouted the directive, putting students and staff at ‘unnecessary risk’. However, the school authorities did not comment on this.
Armed criminal gangs (locally known as ‘bandits’) have made kidnapping a big business in various parts of Nigeria. In order to prevent the collection of ransom, the law prohibits the payment of ransom for kidnapping, but in practice it has not had much effect.
Friday’s incident was the third mass abduction this week. Earlier on Monday, more than 25 Muslim girls were abducted from a residential school in neighboring Kebbi state. In the same week, two people were killed and 38 kidnapped in an attack on a church in the southern state of Kwara.
Meanwhile, President Bola Tinubu has canceled all of his foreign tours (including attending the G20 summit in South Africa) amid growing insecurity in the country. The central government has ordered closure of more than 40 federal colleges. All public schools have also been declared closed in some states.
Public outrage is growing in Nigeria over the increasing number of kidnappings and attacks. People are demanding that the government should take more stringent measures for the safety of children and rural areas.
The abduction comes at a time when many on the right, including US President Donald Trump, are claiming that there is a planned attack on Christians in Nigeria. However, the Nigerian government has rejected this allegation. In fact, both Muslims and Christians were attacked in the country.
A government spokesman said, ‘Armed terrorists attack anyone who opposes their ideology – Muslim, Christian or secular.’
Kidnapping of schoolgirls has become a symbol of insecurity in Africa’s most populous country, Nigeria. According to locals, schools are strategic targets for armed groups—attacks attract more attention.
UNICEF said last year that only 37 percent of schools in 10 conflict-prone states had early warning systems in place to detect threats.
10 years ago, Boko Haram grabbed international attention when they kidnapped 276 schoolgirls from a school in Chibuk, Nigeria. But in recent years, dozens of ‘bandit’ groups have become active in the north. They usually attack unsecured, remote villages.
At least 1,500 students (mostly female students) have been abducted since the Boko Haram incident in Chibuk. Many of them were released in exchange for ransom.
Boko Haram kidnaps mainly to fulfill their objectives, which include opposition to Western education and the establishment of a Sharia-based state in Nigeria. Many of the abductees are forced to join their organization or used for ransom.
However, Boko Haram’s main goal is to oppose and resist Western-style education. They believe that such education is against their ‘Islamic’ ideology.
Another of their goals is to establish an Islamic Sharia-based state in Nigeria. To achieve this goal they use activities like violence and kidnapping.
Apart from this, they collect money for their military and other activities by extorting ransom from abductees (girls). In many cases, the abductees (boys) are forced to join their own gangs.
Other armed groups in the North also carry out kidnappings mainly for ransom. Authorities say many of them were previously involved in cattle rearing or agriculture. After a long conflict, they took up arms.
