There has been an upsurge in kidnapping and banditry in Northwest, Northeast, and North-Central of Nigeria. Last week’s kidnapping of roughly 140 students appears to be the worst kidnapping of Christians to date.
Tragically, this may not be the last kidnapping incident judging by the increase in the rate of kidnapping and the seeming inability of security agencies to address this menace. Recall the Chibok girls kidnapping that sparked a global outcry remain unresolved.
According to eyewitnesses armed assailants breached the walls of Bethel Baptist High School on the outskirts of the state capital, Kaduna, at about 2 a.m. on July 5 and took students in the school hostel away at gunpoint. There were shots fired wildly during this time to scare away local vigilantes. Few students attending the school escaped this violent event.
At this time, local authorities don not actual know how many students were kidnapped. Various sources say between 140 and 179.
School abductions are becoming common in northern Nigeria, where since December about 950 students have been kidnapped half in the past six weeks, according to the UN Children’s Agency.
Local Christians have called for support and prayers as they go through these challenging times.
Image Source –
[1] Signpost of the school
[2] Women around discarded shoes, Thomson Reuters/ Bosan Yakusak
