27 teenage boys and teachers who were kidnapped from their school last week in the north-central state of Niger, Nigeria, have regained freedom from the hands of the notorious bandits disturbing the northern part of the country.
The 38 victims, comprising 24 students, six members of staff and eight relatives of the staff members, arrived in Minna early on Saturday.
They were immediately taken to a government-owned facility for medical examinations and proper clean up.
The rescue effort is coming at the time when Police in Nigeria launched a search and rescue operation for 317 girls kidnapped from a school in the state of Zamfara.
Schools have become targets for mass kidnappings for ransom in northern Nigeria by armed groups.
Mass kidnapping was first carried out by the Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province groups, but the tactic has now been adopted by other militants whose agenda is unclear.
Earlier in his statement, President Muhammadu Buhari had urged state governments to review their policy of rewarding bandits with money and vehicles, warning that the policy might boomerang disastrously.
The president has in recent time appointed new military commanders to fight insurgency, banditry and kidnapping that have gone wild in the country.
The government so far says it will not negotiate with criminals.
By Hussein Jama
February 28, 2021
