Nigeria: release of 137 students after mass kidnapping
In Nigeria, the army announced, on the morning of Sunday March 24, the release of 137 young victims of a mass kidnapping in the north-central part of the country. These students were kidnapped two and a half weeks ago from their school.
This video capture from an AFPTV video from March 7, 2024 shows families of abducted students gathering during the visit of Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani after gunmen abducted more than 280 students from Kuriga school. © AFP
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The kidnapping took place on March 7 when armed men attacked the school in Kuriga, a small town in the north-central state of Kaduna.
The first reports showed nearly 300 students kidnapped, before gradually being revised downwards with the return of those who had had time to flee and hide.
According to the army spokesperson, all of the captives were able to be rescued, i.e. 137 hostages, girls and boys combined, aged 8 to 15, all safe and sound according to him.
The students were found in neighboring Zamfara State and will be taken back to Kaduna where the governor hailed it as a “
day of joy
”.
The terms of the operation were not specified, but since the kidnapping the army had launched extensive searches in this region where numerous armed gangs operate. They practice mass kidnappings for ransoms. We saw it again last weekend with the kidnapping of more than 100 people in two attacks.
According to a Nigerian consultancy firm, 4,777 people have been kidnapped in the country since May 2023 and the arrival as president of Bola Tinubu.
Read alsoMass kidnappings in Nigeria: President Tinubu mobilizes military reinforcements
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