Nigeria launches sweeping rescue mission after armed groups abduct hundreds of mosque worshippers
Nigeria's military and security forces have launched a large-scale operation to locate and free hundreds of worshippers abducted from mosques in the country's north, as authorities face growing public anger over a rising wave of ransom kidnappings.
The coordinated rescue effort began on Wednesday after President Bola Tinubu ordered security agencies to spare no effort in bringing home an estimated 600 people seized from the Dekera area of Niger State last week. In a late-night social media post on Tuesday, Tinubu directed the armed forces, police, the Department of State Services and other intelligence units to work together on the operation, calling it a top national priority.
The abductions, which witnesses described as a brazen daylight attack, have once again highlighted the fragility of security in Nigeria's northwestern and north-central regions, where armed gangs have increasingly targeted villages, schools and places of worship. Analysts say the trend is not merely a criminal enterprise but a symptom of deeper state weaknesses, including porous borders, poverty and a lack of effective policing in rural areas.
The timing is especially delicate. With a presidential election scheduled for January, security has emerged as a defining campaign issue. President Tinubu, who has faced criticism over his handling of violence in the north, now finds himself under intense scrutiny to deliver results. His public remarks, vowing that “terror will not cow Nigeria,” appear aimed at projecting resolve even as the crisis deepens.
On Sunday, a video surfaced showing what appeared to be a large group of captives surrounded by armed men in a forest clearing. The footage, circulated widely on Facebook and WhatsApp, showed children crying as a gunman speaking in Hausa appealed to families to identify their loved ones. News agencies could not independently verify the location or exact date of the recording, though no earlier version of the video has been found online.
Local officials reported that at least 30 people were killed in Friday's attack and buried on Sunday. Abubakar Umar, a community leader in Dekera, told Reuters that more than 2,000 residents had fled into neighbouring Benin, underscoring the scale of displacement triggered by the violence.
Amnesty International urged Nigerian authorities to prioritise the safe release of the worshippers, describing mass abductions as a growing national threat. The presidency, in its first official comment on the incident, condemned the “cowardly attack on defenceless Nigerians” and promised that those responsible would be brought to justice.
But security experts question how quickly the government can reverse a trend that has deepened for years. Abuja-based analyst Kabir Adamu said it was unclear which group was behind the abductions, though he expected the gunmen to soon make contact and demand a ransom. He added that the daylight attack underscored how little progress Nigeria's security forces had made in preventing such operations.
Meanwhile, the broader regional dimension remains troubling. Northwestern Nigeria has long served as a transit corridor for arms and fighters moving across West Africa. Alongside the activities of Boko Haram and Islamic State-affiliated groups, armed militias with no clear ideology now compete for control of territory and resources, using mass kidnapping as a financing tool.
Tinubu has insisted the authorities will not negotiate with terrorists, but he has also acknowledged the anguish of victims' families. “You are not alone,” he wrote. “The entire nation shares your anguish. We will not rest until your sons, daughters, mothers and fathers are brought back safely to you.”
The president said he had directed security chiefs to brief him regularly on the rescue operation's progress “until all those abducted are accounted for.” Whether that promise translates into concrete results on the ground, however, remains to be seen.