Kidnappers abduct students from school in central Nigeria

Kidnappers abducted students in an attack on a school in the north-central Nigerian state of Niger, a state government official said on Sunday.

Armed groups carrying out kidnapping for ransom have carried out a series of raids on schools and universities in northern Nigeria in recent months, abducting more than 700 students for ransom since December.

“There was an abduction at an Islamic School in Tegina. But we are yet to ascertain the number of students abducted,” Mary Noel Berje, the state governor’s chief press secretary, told Reuters.

On Saturday, the remaining 14 students were freed after being abducted last month from a university in neighbouring Kaduna state.

Kidnap for ransom has become common in the last few years in many parts of Nigeria.