Gunmen kidnap six in rare attack on university in Nigeria’s capital

3 yıl önce

DAKAR, Senegal â Gunmen kidnapped four staffers and two of their children from the University of Abuja early Tuesday, the university said, staging the first high-profile attack on a campus in Nigeriaâs capital as the nation confronts a wave of mass abductions.

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Criminal gangs known as bandits normally strike schools across the north of Africaâs most populous country, a phenomenon that has driven a generation of dropouts.

More than 600 schools in the region have closed this year â temporarily or indefinitely â due to a mix of pandemic restrictions and organized crime, researchers say. An estimated 3 million students have stopped going to class.

For Nigerian students living in fear of the next mass kidnapping, there is only one defense â to run

Abuja is known for being an oasis of relative calm. The city of about 3.5 million is home to President Muhammadu Buhari, who has repeatedly pledged to vanquish the kidnapping threat with an escalated military campaign.

But abductions remain a stubbornly grim part of life in the rest of Nigeria. People are grabbed out of cars, buses, markets and their homes. The military outpost near the University of Abuja didnât deter Tuesdayâs assailants.

âThe gunshots lasted from after midnight until 2 a.m.,â said Geoffrey Nwaka, a soil science professor who lives close to campus. âItâs not secure at all. Our security guards donât have enough weapons to defend the area. Nobody is safe.â

Nigeria is also grappling with an extremist threat in the northeast. Boko Haram gained international notoriety in 2014 after kidnapping more than 270 female students from a Chibok town school.

Bandits have become copycats, analysts say, striking classrooms to drum up harsh publicity and pressure local leaders to pay hefty ransoms.

Hundreds of students have been dragged from educational facilities this year. One of the worst attacks came in February when assailants kidnapped 317 girls from a Zamfara state school. (Like most other victims, they were released after secretive negotiations.)

The crime sprees fuel a lucrative industry.

Between 2011 and 2020, Nigerians spent at least $18 million to liberate themselves or a family member, according to a report from SB Morgen, a consulting firm that analyzed data from open sources.

Ismail Alfa in Maiduguri, Nigeria contributed to this report.

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