Security agencies in Niger State are continuing rescue operations following a series of attacks on communities in the state, including an assault on a mosque during Friday prayers that resulted in the abduction of worshippers.
The incident has generated widespread concern after residents reportedly estimated that hundreds of people may have been taken, although authorities say efforts are still underway to establish the exact number of victims.
Speaking from Minna, spokesperson for the Niger State Police Command, Deputy Commissioner of Police Wasiu Abiodun, said the police received reports on Friday evening, at about 4 p.m., that armed men had invaded several communities in the Birnin area.
According to him, the attackers targeted several villages, including Kida, Zana, Masaka and Sabon Gida, before storming a mosque in Ekara, where worshippers had gathered for Friday prayers.
Abiodun said the attackers surrounded the mosque immediately after prayers and abducted 35 worshippers.
“Immediately after the prayers, they surrounded the mosque and abducted 35 people.”
The police spokesperson said tactical police units and military personnel were alerted immediately after the reports came in and that security forces began assessing the situation and working on rescue operations.
Despite the police's initial figure, community leaders and residents have reportedly suggested that the overall number of people missing could be substantially higher.
Police said establishing an accurate figure has been complicated by the fact that some residents fled into surrounding forests during the attacks.
Abiodun said authorities were conducting a comprehensive headcount in collaboration with local residents and community members who could identify those missing.
He stressed that the assessment remained ongoing and that the figures being circulated should therefore be treated with caution until the security agencies complete their verification.
The situation has been further complicated by an unverified video circulating online, which is purported to have been released by the abductors.
The footage appears to show large numbers of women, children and elderly people being held by armed men in forested locations.
The authenticity, location and circumstances surrounding the video have not been independently established, and authorities have yet to confirm that all the people shown are victims of the Niger State attacks.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has condemned the reported mass abduction and ordered security agencies to intensify efforts to rescue the victims.
The President directed the country's security agencies to coordinate the rescue operation and ensure that all abducted Nigerians are accounted for.
Tinubu described the perpetrators as “enemies of peace” and “enemies of humanity”, while expressing condolences to families affected by the attacks.
He also directed the service chiefs to provide regular briefings on the rescue operation until the victims are accounted for and pledged federal support for recovery efforts and additional security measures in Niger State.
The Niger State Police Command said joint security forces have been deployed to the affected areas as efforts continue to locate the abducted persons.
Police authorities have maintained that no deaths had been confirmed from the incident based on information available at the time of their briefing, while emphasizing that the assessment and verification process was still underway.
The conflicting estimates over the number of people abducted have heightened concerns over the scale of the attacks.
For now, security agencies are working with affected communities to reconcile the different figures, identify those missing and determine the full extent of the attacks.
Authorities are expected to provide further updates as rescue operations and the headcount continue.
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