Google map picture of Kuchi village in Niger State.
Gunmen in central Nigeria kidnapped about 150 folks within the nation’s newest mass kidnapping, officers stated. AFP on Could 27.
Attackers on bikes stormed the village of Kuchi in Niger state on Friday night time, killing eight folks and “kidnapping about 150 villagers,” native authorities chairman Aminu Najume stated.
“They arrived on about 100 bikes, every one with three males,” he stated. “No assist arrived throughout the three hours they had been working within the city.”
A UN supply gave the identical determine for the variety of abductees, whereas Nigeria’s state rescue company, SEMA, stated greater than 100 had been kidnapped.
Mass kidnappings for ransom are frequent in Nigeria’s northwestern and central states, the place closely armed gangs identified domestically as bandits usually assault distant villages to loot and kidnap their residents.
Boko Haram and the rival jihadist group Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) additionally frequently perform kidnappings in northeastern Nigeria.
Some jihadist teams have established a presence exterior the area, together with Niger State.
Najume, who blamed bandits for Friday’s assault, accused Nigerian safety forces of failing to stop common raids.
“These killers often come from neighboring Kaduna State to function in Niger and return. They arrive in lots of and, surprisingly, the safety personnel don’t see them whereas they’re on their method. And when the villagers alert them, they don’t take any motion,” he said.
The bandits aren’t ideologically inclined and are motivated by monetary acquire, however analysts and officers have expressed concern about their rising alliance with jihadists waging a 15-year battle within the northeast.
