Guwahati News Desk: After a duration of three long months, the students who were abducted from an Islamic school in north-central Nigerian state of Niger were finally released by the abductors on Thursday.
The releases were confirmed by an official who asked not to be named because the government planned to issue a statement once they have the children.
The head teacher, Abubakar Alhassan, said he could not give an exact number of how many students have been freed, but informed that “none of the pupils are in captivity”.
Alhassan further informed that the freed students were looking unhealthy, frail and exhausted.
The released students are currently being treated in hospital in the state capital.
Regarding the abduction incident, it was in May, when around 136 students from the school in Tegina, Niger state, were seized by gunmen, who demanded for a ransom. However, six among the abducted students had died of illness.
Moreover, in July the parents and the school had raised funds to free the pupils but the kidnappers told them that it was not enough. In addition, Alhassan said that they then paid more money and even bought motorcycles for those behind the mass abduction to convince them to release the children.
As per the sources, criminal groups carrying out kidnappings for ransom are being blamed for the series of raids on schools in northern Nigeria that took place in the recent months. In addition, the abductions in Nigeria, since December 2020, has crossed more than 1,000 students.
Moreover, the authorities there have been criticized for their failure to tackle the country’s widespread insecurity including the deepening kidnapping crisis.
Photo | The Guardian