Gunmen kidnap at least 50 people in northwestern Nigeria

ABUJA, Nigeria -- Armed men kidnapped dozens of people in northwestern Nigeria, residents and the police told The Associated Press on Tuesday, in the latest mass abduction in the region.

The gunmen abducted at least 50 people, including several women and children, in the Maradun area of the state of Zamfara over the weekend, residents said.

Yazid Abubakar, spokesperson for the Zamfara police, confirmed that the kidnapping took place but did not provide more details.

No group has claimed responsibility for the abduction, which locals have blamed on bandit groups known for mass killings and kidnappings for ransom in the conflict-battered northern region, most of them former herders in conflict with settled communities.

Halliru Attahiru, a community leader in Maradun whose niece is among those abducted, said the armed men's raid lasted over two hours.

“Several women and small children were kidnapped " Attahiru said. “The government is yet to take any action.”

The gunmen have not contacted the families of the kidnapped, Tasiu Hamisu, another resident whose relatives were among those taken, told The Associated Press.

“There was a house where 20 people were abducted,” Hamisu said. The armed men operated with impunity, without any security presence to repel them, he added.

Kidnappings have become common in parts of northwestern Nigeria, where dozens of armed groups take advantage of a limited security presence to carry out attacks on villages and along major roads. Most victims are released only after the payment of ransoms that sometimes run into the thousands of dollars.

In March, more than 130 schoolchildren were rescued after spending more than two weeks in captivity in the neighboring state of Kaduna.

The military is stepping up efforts to address security challenges in the country’s northern regions, Nigeria’s army chief, Olufemi Oluyede, said Monday.

The mass abduction of 276 schoolgirls from Chibok a decade ago marked the beginning of a new era of fear —with nearly 100 of the girls still in captivity in 2024.

Since the Chibok abductions, at least 1,500 students have been kidnapped, as armed groups increasingly find in them a lucrative way to fund other crimes and control villages in the nation’s mineral-rich but poorly policed northwestern region.