Nigeria's government is making no meaningful effort to rescue more than 250 children abducted from a Catholic boarding school in Niger state last Friday, according to Bishop Bulus Dauwa Yohanna, a key Catholic cleric in the region. The bishop expressed his concerns during an interview, suggesting the government has merely compiled the names of the missing children without undertaking substantive rescue initiatives.
In contrast, the Niger state police chief, Adamu Abdullahi Elleman, contended that they had deployed sufficient officers to the area and accused the school of non-cooperation with the rescue operations. While the abductors of the children from St Mary's school in Papiri village remain unknown, such kidnappings for ransom have become tragically common in Nigeria, perpetrated mainly by criminal gangs.
The situation has caught international attention, with threats of military intervention by US President Donald Trump should the violence against Christians in Nigeria persist unabated. This alarming narrative unfolds within a broader context of escalating insecurity across Nigeria, where both Christian and Muslim communities suffer at the hands of militant insurgencies, particularly in the north-east, which have even led to the loss of high-ranking security personnel's lives.
In recent weeks, Nigeria has witnessed several abductions: last Monday, over 20 Muslim schoolgirls were taken from a boarding school in Kebbi state, and subsequent church attacks resulted in casualties. Bishop Yohanna has vehemently refuted state government claims that the church neglected safety orders and argued for a more coordinated response from the authorities. As the search for the abducted children continues, many parents are withdrawing their children from schools due to the pervasive fear of kidnapping.
In contrast, the Niger state police chief, Adamu Abdullahi Elleman, contended that they had deployed sufficient officers to the area and accused the school of non-cooperation with the rescue operations. While the abductors of the children from St Mary's school in Papiri village remain unknown, such kidnappings for ransom have become tragically common in Nigeria, perpetrated mainly by criminal gangs.
The situation has caught international attention, with threats of military intervention by US President Donald Trump should the violence against Christians in Nigeria persist unabated. This alarming narrative unfolds within a broader context of escalating insecurity across Nigeria, where both Christian and Muslim communities suffer at the hands of militant insurgencies, particularly in the north-east, which have even led to the loss of high-ranking security personnel's lives.
In recent weeks, Nigeria has witnessed several abductions: last Monday, over 20 Muslim schoolgirls were taken from a boarding school in Kebbi state, and subsequent church attacks resulted in casualties. Bishop Yohanna has vehemently refuted state government claims that the church neglected safety orders and argued for a more coordinated response from the authorities. As the search for the abducted children continues, many parents are withdrawing their children from schools due to the pervasive fear of kidnapping.
