Post by : Rameen Ariff

In a disturbing event on Friday, armed assailants kidnapped over 200 students from St. Mary’s Catholic School in Papiri, Niger State, Nigeria. The operation unfolded around 2:00 a.m. local time, deliberately targeting the boarding school despite official cautions advising against school operations due to escalating security threats. Alongside the students, 12 staff members were also taken.

This marks the second significant school kidnapping in Nigeria within the week. Earlier, over 20 schoolgirls were abducted from a boarding institution in Kebbi State, located in the northwest of the country. The area has been plagued by a wave of assaults by armed gangs, often referred to as bandits, who routinely kidnap children for ransom.

Residents in Papiri expressed deep fear and anxiety while families anxiously awaited updates on the abducted students. Dominic Adamu, a local father whose daughters attend St. Mary’s, shared, “Everyone feels weak… it shocked us all.” Another woman tearfully revealed that her six- and thirteen-year-old nieces were among those taken.

Authorities in Niger State disclosed that the school disregarded directives to keep boarding facilities shut after receiving intelligence alerting them to potential attack risks. The government criticized the institution for resuming classes without permission, arguing that this decision exposed students and staff to avoidable threats.

In response to the escalating security dilemma, President Bola Tinubu has postponed international engagements, including a planned participation in this weekend’s G20 summit in South Africa. Law enforcement and security teams are currently scouring wooded areas and neighboring regions to recover the kidnapped students.

These incidents are part of a broader spectrum of security concerns plaguing Nigeria, including conflicts between herdsmen and farmers, jihadist violence in the northeast, and frequent ransom kidnappings. While US authorities have voiced concerns regarding violence against Christians, the Nigerian administration emphasizes that such attacks impact individuals of all faiths and are predominantly perpetrated by criminal groups aiming for ransom.

Earlier this week, two schoolgirls from Kebbi State who had been kidnapped managed to escape, but 23 remain unaccounted for. In a related incident targeting a church in Kwara State, two people were killed, and 38 were abducted. Local sources report that ransom demands have been made by the kidnappers, despite an official ban on paying ransoms to mitigate criminal activities.

The ongoing violence has raised fears nationwide, with parents, students, and communities expressing grave concern for the safe return of the kidnapped children.

#Global