Nigeria Faces New Kidnapping Crisis: Dozens Taken

A fresh wave of violence has struck Nigeria’s Kaduna state, with dozens of individuals, including women and children, falling victim to kidnapping in an attack on Kajuru Station late Sunday night.

Eyewitnesses recounted how armed gunmen descended upon the area, not only abducting numerous people but also plundering shops and looting food supplies. While the exact number of those abducted remains undisclosed by the police, local residents estimate the figure to exceed 80 individuals.

This alarming incident follows closely on the heels of another abduction just two days prior, where approximately 15 individuals were taken from the same region. Furthermore, the region was rattled earlier this month by the abduction of over 280 students from the town of Kuriga, also within Kaduna state. Authorities have remained resolute in their stance against paying ransoms for their release, despite mounting pressure.

President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to bolstering the armed forces to combat such crimes has faced heightened scrutiny in the wake of these successive abductions. The escalating violence and the frequency of such attacks underscore the urgent need for robust security measures to safeguard the lives and well-being of citizens, particularly in vulnerable regions like Kaduna state.