Outcry as bandits kidnap worshippers during church service
Armed men have kidnapped at least 13 people from a church in Nigeria‘s central Kogi state – the second such attack in as many weeks.
The attackers stormed into Evangelical Church Winning All in the mainly rural farming district of Aaaaz-Kiri during Sunday morning service, opening fire and then abducting some of the congregants.
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Five of the gunmen were killed, according to Kogi state’s information commissioner, Kingley Fanwo, but he said others managed to escape despite being wounded.
Officials describe the assailants as “bandits” – a term used locally for criminal gangs who typically kidnap people for ransom.
Only two weeks ago, gunmen raided a church in the nearby town of Ejiba, kidnapping a pastor, his wife and several church members.
They are still being held, despite efforts by security agencies to secure their release, residents say.
“The security onslaught in neighbouring Niger and Kwara states is pushing the bandits more towards Kogi state,” Fanwo told the BBC.
These latest incidents underline Nigeria’s persistent insecurity, particularly in parts of the north-western and central regions, where armed criminal gangs have carried out a wave of mass abductions, attacks on villages and assaults on places of worship in recent weeks.
The biggest of these saw more than 250 children and 12 members of staff reportedly kidnapped from St Mary’s Catholic School in Papiri, Niger state, at the end of November.
In recent weeks, President Bola Tinubu has ordered security chiefs to step up intelligence-led operations to curb kidnappings and approved the deployment of extra troops and police to known hotspots.
Authorities also say joint military and police task forces have recorded successes in dismantling some armed groups. Yet the attacks continue largely unabated, especially in rural communities where security presence is thin and response times are slow.
This comes even as the Nigerian government says jihadist groups Boko Haram and Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) are behind the recent wave of abductions in north-western and central Nigeria, but this has been disputed by analysts who tell the BBC they were committed by criminal gangs locally known as “bandits”.
This is the first time the government has stated who it believes is responsible for the kidnappings, but it has not revealed any evidence to back its claims.
Kidnap for ransom has become big business in parts of Nigeria in recent years, with the culprits ranging from kidnap gangs, jihadists and separatists.
It is a lucrative money-spinner, but officials consistently deny paying ransoms.
