Essay: Nigerian bandits strategically target school children for kidnappings – here’s why
OLUWOLE OJEWALE, regional coordinator for the Institute for Security Studies, explains why school children are all too often targets for kidnappers in Nigeria…
Ukraine’s Zelenskiy calls Russian leaders “bandits”, rules out frozen conflict
Kyiv, UkraineReuters President Volodymyr Zelenskiy described Russia’s political and military leaders as bandits on Wednesday, and ruled out any peace plan that would turn the war on Ukraine into a frozen conflict. Zelenskiy made his remarks in a speech to parliament on Ukraine’s Constitution Day, a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin praised his troops […]
Loud blast, gunshots as suspected bandits attack Nigerian train
Kaduna, Nigeria Reuters Aminu Sani was travelling by rail to see his newborn baby in the northern Nigerian city of Kaduna on Monday night when a loud blast shook the train and gunfire followed, forcing passengers to take cover on the floor. At least seven people were killed and several were missing after suspected bandits […]
Gunmen kill more than 50 in Nigeria’s north-west, residents say
Kebbi, Nigeria Reuters Dozens of gunmen on motorbikes ransacked a village and killed more than 50 people in the latest violence in northwest Nigeria, residents said on Sunday. Gangs have been terrorising areas of the north-west in recent years, forcing thousands to flee and gaining global notoriety through mass kidnappings at schools for ransom. Local […]
About 200 dead in attacks in north-west Nigeria, residents say
Maiduguri, NigeriaReuters An estimated 200 people or more have been killed in villages in Nigeria’s Zamfara state during deadly reprisal attacks by armed bandits following military air strikes on their hideouts this week, residents said on Saturday. Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari speaks during the 75th anniversary celebrations of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural […]
Armed bandits kill at least 30 in Nigeria’s Zamfara state
Maiduguri, NigeriaReuters Armed bandits have killed at least 30 people in Nigeria’s Zamfara State, raiding several villages in a region that has been in a security crisis for more than two years, residents and security sources said on Friday. There have been a series of attacks in north-west Nigeria, which has seen a sharp rise […]
Desperate Nigerians sell homes and land to free kidnapped children
Tegina, NigeriaReuters After armed men snatched seven of Abubakar Adam’s 11 children in northwestern Nigeria, he sold his car and a parcel of land and cleaned out his savings to raise a ransom to free them. He sent his three million naira ($US7,300) into the bush, together with payments from other families in his town […]
Gunmen kidnap dozens of villagers in north-western Nigeria
Maiduguri, Nigeria Reuters Gunmen abducted at least 60 people and killed one person in north-western Nigeria after riding motorbikes into five villages and firing sporadically into the air, a police official and several residents said on Saturday. Nigeria is battling an increase in armed robberies and kidnappings for ransom, mainly in northwestern areas, where thinly […]
Nigeria kidnap spike threatens to create lost generation of students
Kaduna, NigeriaReuters Yusuf Lado had not yet learned to read or write when his school closed for fear of attacks by armed gangs, which have been snatching students across northwest Nigeria in hopes of lucrative ransom payouts. The seven-year-old has now set aside his dream of becoming a doctor and is training to be a […]
Freed Nigerian schoolboys return home, tell of beatings and hunger
Katsina, NigeriaReuters Scores of schoolboys who were rescued from kidnappers in north-west Nigeria arrived back home on Friday, many of them barefoot and wrapped in blankets after their week-long ordeal. The boys, dressed in dusty clothes, looked dazed and weary but otherwise well as they got off buses in the city of Katsina. Rescued Nigerian […]