28 Abducted in Nigeria’s Plateau State While Travelling to Islamic Event

At least 28 people were kidnapped by armed men in Nigeria’s central Plateau state while travelling to an annual Islamic event, local police confirmed on Monday.

The victims, including women and children, were ambushed late Sunday night when gunmen intercepted their bus as it was travelling between rural villages, police spokesperson Alabo Alfred told the BBC.

Authorities have since deployed security assets to the area, Alfred said, adding that efforts were under way to rescue those abducted.

The incident comes just a day after Nigerian officials announced the release of the remaining 130 schoolchildren and teachers abducted in a separate mass kidnapping from a Catholic boarding school in Niger state last month.

A journalist based in Plateau state said families of the abducted passengers have begun receiving ransom demands, though police have not confirmed whether negotiations are under way.

Officials have also not identified the perpetrators. However, kidnapping for ransom by criminal gangs, locally referred to as bandits, has become increasingly common across northern and central parts of Nigeria.

While paying ransom is illegal under Nigerian law, such payments are widely believed to be the means through which many hostages regain their freedom, providing a major source of funding for criminal groups.

Police clarified that the Plateau state kidnapping is not linked to the Islamist insurgency in northeastern Nigeria, where jihadist groups have been waging an armed campaign against the state for more than a decade.

Nigeria’s security challenges drew renewed international attention in November after US President Donald Trump threatened to deploy troops to the country, alleging that Christians were being targeted. The Nigerian government has denied claims of religious persecution.

On Monday, Information Minister Mohammed Idris said tensions with the United States over security concerns had largely eased, adding that the government plans to deploy trained forest guards to secure remote areas used by criminal gangs.