The kidnapping of more than 300 students in two incidents this week in northwestern Nigeria were the latest such attacks
What seemed like an aberration a decade ago when militants kidnapped 276 schoolgirls in Nigeria’s Chibok community has become a recurring horror in the country. Since then, the number of students abducted has risen to more than 1,400.
Dec. 11, 2020 – Gunmen on motorcycles attack a government science secondary school in the Katsina State town of Kankara and abduct more than 300 boys. The state government announced their release six days later, following negotiations. The mastermind of the attack, Auwwalu Daudawa, accepted a government amnesty deal but later returned to the bush where he was killed by a rival gang.
March 11, 2021 – Gunmen abducted 39 students – 23 females and 16 males – from the Federal College of Forestry Mechanization in the Kaduna State town of Afaka. The students were released in batches between April and May.