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Nigerian Police Confirm Mass Abduction of 160 Villagers
Nigerian police confirmed that armed bandits abducted more than 160 villagers in Kaduna State during a weekend church raid, reversing earlier denials as rescue operations continue.
Port Harcourt, Nigeria - October 20, 2020: Protesters walking around the city of Port Harcourt, Nigeria (@Unsplash)
Police in Nigeria’s Kaduna State have confirmed that armed bandits abducted dozens of villagers over the weekend, reversing earlier denials of the incident and launching security operations to rescue those taken.
In a statement issued late Tuesday, Nigeria’s national police spokesman, Benjamin Hundeyin, said an abduction occurred on Sunday and that security forces were conducting operations “with a clear focus on locating and safely rescuing the victims and restoring calm to the area.” Hundeyin said earlier denials by police officers and other officials were “intended to prevent unnecessary panic while facts were being confirmed.” The police statement did not specify how many people were abducted.
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Kaduna State lawmaker Usman Danlami Stingo told The Associated Press that 168 people were missing following the attack. Separately, the head of the Christian Association of Nigeria in the country’s north, Reverend John Hayab, told Reuters on Monday that at least 172 worshippers were kidnapped, with nine later escaping, leaving 163 people still missing.
The raid took place Sunday in Kurmin Wali village, where dozens of gunmen stormed the area as residents gathered to pray in three churches, abducting what was described as a quarter of the village’s population. Al Jazeera’s Ahmed Idris, reporting from the village, said the attack targeted people during worship services.
“Two days after the attack, the community received a demand,” Idris reported. According to residents, the bandits are demanding the return of 10 motorcycles they claim to have hidden in the bush as a condition for releasing the captives. Villagers say they do not know where the motorcycles are and that repeated raids have left many struggling to meet basic needs. In communities facing chronic insecurity and poverty, even small material losses can be devastating, leaving families focused on survival rather than normal routines whether that means finding enough food or holding onto everyday items.
The abductions are the latest in a series of mass kidnappings across Nigeria, where criminal gangs known locally as “bandits” routinely abduct large numbers of people for ransom and raid villages, particularly in the country’s northern and central regions. These attacks have targeted both Christians and Muslims.
In November, armed gangs abducted more than 300 students and teachers from a Catholic school in Niger State. Fifty of those abducted later escaped, while the remaining captives were released in two batches weeks later.
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, is roughly evenly divided between a mostly Christian south and a Muslim-majority north and faces multiple overlapping conflicts. Experts say violence often affects both Christians and Muslims without distinction.
The security situation has drawn increased international attention, particularly from United States President Donald Trump, who has focused on the killing of Christians in Nigeria and placed diplomatic pressure on the government in Abuja. In late December, the United States launched strikes on what it and the Nigerian government described as armed groups in northwestern Sokoto State, strikes that Nigeria said it approved.
Editor’s Note:
This article reports on a mass abduction in Nigeria’s Kaduna State, outlining official responses, conflicting victim counts, and the broader security challenges posed by ongoing bandit violence in the region.
