Freedom Achieved for One Hundred Abducted Nigerian Pupils, however Many Continue to Be in Captivity

The country's government have obtained the freedom of a hundred abducted students taken by armed men from a religious school in November, according to a source within the UN and local media on Sunday. Nevertheless, the situation of a further one hundred and sixty-five students and staff presumed to continue being in captivity was uncertain.

The Incident

During November, three hundred and fifteen individuals were kidnapped from St Mary’s mixed boarding school in north-central Niger state, as the nation buckled under a wave of group seizures reminiscent of the infamous 2014 Boko Haram abduction of female students in a town in north-east Nigeria.

Around fifty got away in the immediate aftermath, resulting in two hundred and sixty-five presumed still held.

The Release

The 100 students are set to be released to Niger state officials on Monday, stated by the source.

“They are going to be released to Niger state government tomorrow,” the official told AFP.

Local media also reported that the release of 100 children had been achieved, though they lacked specifics on if it was achieved via dialogue or military force, nor on the situation of the other students and staff.

The liberation of the youngsters was confirmed to AFP by presidential spokesman Sunday Dare.

Statements

“We've been praying and waiting for their safe arrival, if it is true then it is positive news,” said a spokesman, spokesman for Bishop Bulus Yohanna of the Kontagora diocese which runs the school.

“Yet, we are not formally informed and have lacked official communication by the federal government.”

Wider Crisis

Though abductions for money are widespread in the country as a means for criminals and armed groups to make quick cash, in a wave of large-scale kidnappings in last month, scores of individuals were abducted, placing an critical attention on Nigeria’s serious state of safety.

The country is grappling with a long-running jihadist insurgency in the northeastern region, while armed bandit gangs perpetrate kidnappings and loot villages in the north-west, and disputes between agricultural and pastoral communities concerning scarce resources occur in the middle belt.

Additionally, militant factions linked to secessionist agendas also haunt the nation's volatile southeastern region.

A Dark Legacy

A earliest mass kidnappings that garnered international attention was in 2014, when nearly 300 girls were snatched from their boarding school in the north-eastern town of Chibok by insurgents.

Now, Nigeria’s kidnap-for-ransom crisis has “evolved into a systematic, revenue-generating business” that collected about a significant sum between a recent twelve-month period, as per a analysis by a Nigerian research firm.