Freedom Achieved for One Hundred Abducted Nigerian Pupils, however Numerous Are Still in Captivity

Nigerian authorities have ensured the liberation of 100 abducted pupils taken by attackers from a Catholic school in November, per reports from a source within the UN and Nigerian press this past Sunday. Yet, the fate of another 165 hostages thought to continue being held captive remained unclear.

Background

In November, 315 people were taken from a mixed residential school in central Niger state, as the country faced a wave of group seizures similar to the infamous 2014 Boko Haram kidnapping of female students in a town in north-east Nigeria.

Around fifty managed to flee soon after, which left 265 presumed still held.

The Release

The a hundred youngsters are set to be released to state authorities on Monday, stated by the source.

“They will be transferred to state authorities tomorrow,” the official stated to AFP.

Local media also reported that the liberation of the students had been obtained, but did not provide details on whether it was done through talks or a security operation, nor on the fate of the still-missing students and staff.

The release of the students was announced to AFP by a government spokesperson Sunday Dare.

Statements

“For a long time we were praying and waiting for their safe arrival, if it is true then it is wonderful news,” said Daniel Atori, speaking for the local diocese of the Kontagora diocese which operates the school.

“Nevertheless, we are without official confirmation and have not been duly notified by the federal government.”

Security Situation

Though abductions for money are prevalent in the country as a means for gangs and militants to fund their activities, in a spate of mass abductions in last month, many people were abducted, placing an uncomfortable attention on the country's already grim law and order crisis.

The nation faces a long-running jihadist insurgency in the northeastern region, while marauding gangs perpetrate kidnappings and plunder villages in the northwestern region, and conflicts between agricultural and pastoral communities concerning scarce land and resources occur in the middle belt.

On a smaller scale, armed groups associated with secessionist agendas also haunt the country’s volatile south-east.

A Dark Legacy

One of the earliest large-scale abductions that attracted worldwide outrage was in 2014, when nearly 300 girls were abducted from their boarding school in the north-eastern town of Chibok by insurgents.

A decade later, Nigeria’s hostage-taking issue has “become a structured, revenue-generating business” that collected around a significant sum between last year, as per a analysis by a Nigerian consultancy.