Amnesty International reports a surge in kidnappings in northern Nigeria, with over 1,100 abductions between January and April 2026, amid calls for stronger government action on violence and its impact on communities and education.
Amnesty International says northern Nigeria is sliding deeper into a kidnapping crisis, with at least 1,100 people abducted between January and April 2026. In a statement published on its Nigerian website and shared on social media, the rights group urged President Bola Tinubu’s government to respond more forcefully to the surge in attacks on rural communities and displaced people.
The organisation said the pattern of violence has shifted increasingly towards ransom-driven abductions, with victims often exposed to torture, starvation, rape and coercion into violent acts. Amnesty’s Nigeria director, Isa Sanusi, said the figures probably understate the true scale of the crisis, arguing that many cases go unreported or are recorded only partially.
Amnesty pointed to a string of attacks across the north to illustrate the scale of the insecurity. These included the January abduction of worshippers in Kajuru in Kaduna state, an attack in Zamfara in which dozens were taken, and reported mass kidnappings in parts of Borno, Kwara and Niger states. In a separate statement in January, Amnesty said the kidnapping of 166 worshippers in Kajuru showed what it described as the authorities’ failure to protect civilians.
The group said the consequences reach far beyond the immediate trauma of captivity. Families are often forced to sell property, raise money through community collections or go into debt to pay ransoms, while some victims are killed, disappeared or further abused if demands are not met. Amnesty also warned that repeated abductions are disrupting schooling, with children pulled out of class and girls in some areas pushed into early marriage as families try to reduce the risk of attack.
Amnesty said the situation amounts to a breach of Nigeria’s obligations under its constitution and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. It has previously warned that repeated kidnappings of schoolchildren and teachers are undermining access to education across the north, where violence has already forced thousands of schools to close.
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Source: Noah Wire Services
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