Eighty worshippers abducted by gunmen in Nigeria’s northern Kaduna State have returned home weeks after their ordeal, police authorities have confirmed.
The victims were among 177 people kidnapped last month when armed assailants raided three churches in Kurmin Wali, a remote village in the state. According to the police, the 80 worshippers managed to escape on the same day they were abducted but went into hiding in neighbouring communities for nearly two weeks.
State police spokesperson Mansur Hassan said the escapees feared being recaptured and only emerged when they felt safe enough to return home.
Security agencies say efforts are ongoing to rescue the remaining 86 people still believed to be in captivity. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, which forms part of a wider surge in kidnappings for ransom across several parts of the country.
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The incident initially drew controversy after police authorities denied that any abduction had taken place. The kidnappings were officially acknowledged on 21 January, following reports from local residents who told the BBC that 177 worshippers had been seized, with 11 escaping shortly after the attack.
The delayed response attracted criticism from Amnesty International, which accused Nigerian authorities of attempting to downplay the incident. The rights group described the response as “desperate denial” and urged the government to take urgent and concrete steps to curb the growing wave of abductions.
Kidnappings have become increasingly common across Nigeria. In November, more than 300 students and teachers were abducted from a Catholic school in neighbouring Niger State before later being released in two batches.
Beyond kidnappings, Nigeria continues to face multiple security threats, including an Islamist insurgency in the north-east, separatist violence in the south-east, and persistent clashes between herders and farmers in central regions over land and water resources.
Security analysts say efforts to address these challenges are weakened by corruption, poor intelligence coordination, and underfunded local police units.
The worsening security situation has also attracted international attention. In December, the United States carried out airstrikes on Christmas Day in north-western Nigeria, targeting camps linked to an Islamist militant group. Following the operation, US President Donald Trump warned that further strikes could follow if attacks on Christians continued.
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, is home to more than 250 ethnic groups and is broadly divided between a predominantly Muslim north and a largely Christian south, with significant religious diversity in the central regions. The federal government has maintained that Nigerians of all faiths have been affected by the ongoing violence.
