The Nigerian army has freed 17 students and a woman who were abducted in a dawn raid by armed men a fortnight ago in Sokoto state. The state governor had made this revelation on Saturday, March 23.
The attack at Tsangaya school on March 9 had came two days after the mass kidnap of school children in Kaduna. The students from this particular incident are still missing.
The Sokoto State Governor, Ahmed Aliyu Sokoto had said the Tsangaya students were freed on Friday after an operation launched by the army and the office of the National Security Adviser.
The school owner, Liman Abubakar Bakuso had said that he was on his way to Sokoto capital to bring back the students.
Abductions by criminal gangs with no seeming affiliation and the demands for ransoms have become an almost daily occurrence, particularly in northern Nigeria, tearing apart families and communities who have to contribute to pay ransoms, often forcing them to sell land, cattle and grain to secure their loved ones’ release.
