Nigeria: Following weeks of imprisonment, 130 kidnapped pupils were freed

According to military and government sources, more than 130 students who had been kidnapped from their school in Kaduna state, Nigeria, more than two weeks ago, were freed on Sunday. Prior to being reunited with their families, they are presently obtaining psychological support. After the raid on the Kuriga school on March 7, school officials first claimed that 287 children had been taken hostage; however, Kaduna Governor Uba Sani stated that the number of kids taken hostage was actually only 137. Due to a number of issues, including incomplete recordkeeping and hostages who escape soon after being taken, there is frequently a disparity in the numbers in Nigeria’s abduction crisis.

The youngsters that were saved were discovered in Zamfara state, over 200 kilometers distant from their school. They looked tired in pictures that were made public by the Nigerian military. They were taken back to the Kaduna State Government House, where Kuriga town chiefs and other local officials were waiting for them. After being kept captive for two weeks, at least 17 other pupils were freed in the northern Sokoto state.

Bola Tinubu, the president, has promised to put policies in place to protect schools against kidnappings. Even if he promised to free the kids without demanding a ransom, families frequently set up ransom payments in response to kidnappings. Although no organization has taken credit for the kidnapping in Kaduna, the locals blame it on bandit gangs that are well-known in the conflict-ridden northern area of Nigeria for carrying out such atrocities.

Authorities have determined that the abductors are hiding in the large forests in the northwest of Nigeria, despite the fact that arrests are rare in this country’s major kidnappings. They were confirmed to be in the uncontrolled forests by Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, a cleric engaged in talks with bandits, and Murtala Ahmed Rufa’i, a professor of peace and conflict studies.