NIGERIAN TERRORISTS KIDNAP 303 STUDENTS AS 50 ESCAPE AND 253 REMAIN CAPTIVE
Armed gunmen have abducted more than 300 students from a school in Nigeria, with 50 children managing to escape while 253 remain in captivity.
The mass kidnapping marks the latest in a series of school abductions plaguing northern Nigeria, where armed gangs routinely target educational institutions for ransom payments.
The attack follows the recent kidnapping of over 300 students and staff from St Mary High School in Niger state's Papiri district, where 265 students and teachers remain held by terrorists despite 50 children escaping and reuniting with their families.
Security analysts have warned that lax justice and absence of consequences continue to embolden criminal gangs operating across Nigeria's northern states.
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu previously vowed the government would "not relent" until every abducted person is brought home, stating
"Every Nigerian, in every state, has the right to safety, and under my watch, we will secure this nation and protect our people."
US President Donald Trump recently stated that Christians are facing persecution in Nigeria and that he was prepared to take military action to protect them.
More than 1,500 students have been kidnapped in Nigeria over the past 10 years, with many freed only after ransom payments to terrorist groups and armed gangs.
The most notorious incident remains the 2014 Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping, when Boko Haram terrorists seized more than 200 teenage students from Government Girls Secondary School in Chibok, Borno State.
Niger state has ordered the closure of all schools in response to the escalating security crisis, while federal authorities have temporarily shut vulnerable institutions in other high risk areas across northern Nigeria.
THE CRUSADER'S OPINION
Fifty children escaped.
Two hundred and fifty three are still missing.
This is the third mass school abduction in recent weeks.
Over 1,500 students kidnapped in a decade.
And the Nigerian government closes schools instead of hunting terrorists.
Closing schools is surrender.
It tells terrorists their strategy works.
It tells parents the government cannot protect their children.
It tells the world that Nigeria has ceded territory to armed gangs.
President Tinubu promises action while children remain in captivity.
Words without bullets are worthless against men who profit from kidnapping.
These terrorists operate with impunity because Nigeria refuses to execute justice.
When kidnapping becomes profitable and consequence free, kidnapping becomes an industry.
The solution is not complicated.
Hunt the terrorists.
Kill them.
Rescue the children.
Imprison anyone who pays ransom.
Make kidnapping so dangerous and unprofitable that gangs choose other crimes.
But that requires a government with the will to protect its citizens.
Nigeria lacks that will.
So children keep disappearing.
And schools keep closing.
And terrorists keep winning.
President Trump offered military intervention.
Nigeria should accept it.
TAKE ACTION
- Support Nigerian Christian persecution victims through Open Doors UK, which provides emergency relief and advocacy for persecuted Christians and kidnapping victims' families. Donate at opendoorsuk.org or call +44 (0)1993 460015 for immediate assistance.
- Contact the Nigerian High Commission in London demanding immediate military action to rescue the 253 kidnapped children. Call +44 (0)20 7839 1244 or email information@nigeriahc.org.uk pressing for aggressive counterterrorism operations against armed gangs.
- Pressure your government to support US military intervention in northern Nigeria to rescue kidnapped students and eliminate terrorist groups. Write to your MP via parliament.uk/get-involved demanding Western special forces assistance.
- Fund Barnabas Aid's Nigeria emergency response providing practical support to families of kidnapping victims and displaced Christians. Visit barnabasfund.org or call +44 (0)1793 610010 to donate directly to relief efforts.
- Support International Christian Concern's advocacy for Nigerian children facing terrorism and mass abductions. Visit persecution.org to sign petitions demanding international action and sanctions against Nigerian officials failing to protect students.
- Pray for the 253 students still held captive and for wisdom for rescue forces. Contact Release International at releaseinternational.org or +44 (0)1689 823491 to join organized prayer networks for Nigerian hostages and their terrified families.
