Reports emerged on Monday that over 100 individuals have been abducted in two separate attacks in northwest Nigeria, escalating concerns following the recent kidnapping of more than 250 school pupils in the same region, according to residents and officials.
The incidents occurred in the Kajuru area of Kaduna state over the weekend.
Local government chairman Ibrahim Gajere disclosed that on Sunday night, gunmen abducted 87 individuals in Kajuru Station. “They went and removed people from their homes at gunpoint,” Gajere stated.
Resident Harisu Dari recounted how armed assailants, known locally as bandits, raided the village around 10:00 pm, systematically abducting residents from door to door.
Supporting the account, a UN source and a former local official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed the details.
Additionally, on Saturday, 16 individuals were reportedly kidnapped in Dogon Noma, approximately 10 kilometers (six miles) away, according to Dari, the UN source, and the former local official.
Despite repeated requests for confirmation, Kaduna police and the state’s security commissioner did not respond.
The recent surge in abductions underscores the persistent threat posed by criminal gangs in northwest Nigeria, who frequently target schools, villages, and highways to capture large numbers of people for ransom.
Earlier this month, gunmen abducted over 250 pupils from a school in Kuriga village, located about 150 kilometers (93 miles) from Kajuru district, marking one of the largest such attacks in recent years.
The escalating wave of large-scale abductions poses a significant challenge to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s government, which has vowed to address the country’s security concerns.
Nigerian risk consultancy SBM Intelligence reported recording 4,777 abductions since Tinubu assumed office in May last year.
