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Officials in Nigeria have secured the release of one hundred kidnapped pupils seized by gunmen from a Catholic school in November, per reports from a United Nations official and regional news outlets this past Sunday. Yet, the fate of a further one hundred and sixty-five students and staff believed to still be in captivity remained unclear.

Context

Last month, three hundred and fifteen people were kidnapped from a co-educational boarding school in north-central Niger state, as the country was gripped by a wave of mass abductions reminiscent of the well-known 2014 jihadist group kidnapping of female students in a town in north-east Nigeria.

Around fifty escaped in the immediate aftermath, resulting in two hundred and sixty-five believed to be under kidnappers' control.

The Release

The a hundred children are scheduled to be handed over to local government officials this Monday, as per the United Nations source.

“They are going to be transferred to the government tomorrow,” the individual told AFP.

Regional reports also confirmed that the release of 100 children had been achieved, without offering details on whether it was achieved via dialogue or a security operation, and no details on the situation of the other individuals.

The liberation of the 100 children was announced to AFP by presidential spokesman an official.

Response

“For a long time we were hoping and praying for their safe arrival, if it is true then it is a cheering news,” said a representative, representing Bishop Bulus Yohanna of the Kontagora diocese which manages the school.

“Nevertheless, we are without official confirmation and have lacked official communication by the government.”

Security Situation

While abductions for money are common in the nation as a means for criminals and armed groups to fund their activities, in a wave of large-scale kidnappings in last month, hundreds were seized, putting an uncomfortable spotlight on the country's serious state of safety.

The nation is grappling with a years-long Islamist militant uprising in the northeastern region, while marauding gangs perpetrate abductions and raid villages in the northwestern region, and disputes between agricultural and pastoral communities regarding diminishing land and resources occur in the country’s centre.

Furthermore, militant factions connected to separatist movements also haunt the nation's unsettled south-east.

A Dark Legacy

One of the most prominent mass kidnappings that drew worldwide outrage was in 2014, when almost 300 girls were taken from their school in the northeastern town of Chibok by the militant group.

Now, the country's hostage-taking crisis has “evolved into a systematic, profit-seeking industry” that raised around a significant sum between last year, stated in a analysis by a Lagos-based consultancy.