More than 130 children who were abducted over two weeks ago from their school in Kaduna state, Nigeria, were rescued on Sunday, according to military and government officials. They are currently receiving psychological support before being reunited with their families. Initially, school authorities reported that 287 students were kidnapped during the attack on the Kuriga school on March 7, but Kaduna Governor Uba Sani clarified that only 137 students were abducted. This discrepancy in numbers is common in Nigeria’s kidnapping crisis due to various factors such as inadequate recordkeeping and some hostages escaping shortly after abduction.

The rescued children, who appeared fatigued in photos released by the Nigerian military, were found in Zamfara state, more than 200 kilometers away from their school. They were transported back to Kaduna State Government House, where local officials, including town leaders from Kuriga, awaited their arrival. Meanwhile, at least 17 other schoolchildren were rescued in northern Sokoto state after being held captive for two weeks.

President Bola Tinubu has pledged to implement strategies to safeguard schools against abductions. Despite his assurance to rescue the children without ransom payments, it’s common practice for families to arrange ransom payments for kidnappings. No group has claimed responsibility for the Kaduna kidnapping, although locals attribute it to bandit groups notorious for such crimes in Nigeria’s conflict-affected northern region.

Although arrests are infrequent in Nigeria’s mass kidnappings, authorities have identified the abductors as hiding in the vast forests of the northwest region. Murtala Ahmed Rufa’i, a peace and conflict studies professor, and Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, a cleric involved in negotiations with bandits, confirmed their presence in the ungoverned forests.

Source: PTI

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