The government of Ekiti State in Nigeria announced today, Tuesday, that gunmen kidnapped six students and three teachers from a school in the state located in the southwestern part of the country on Monday evening, marking the first kidnapping of this kind reported this year. The Ekiti State government stated in a statement that the latest kidnapping occurred while the students and teachers were on their way back from an internal trip on Monday evening. The bus driver was also abducted.
The state added in the statement that security agencies have launched an operation to pursue the kidnappers. No group has claimed responsibility or revealed any ransom demands.
President Bola Tinubu, who is focusing on reviving the struggling economy, is facing increased scrutiny due to a wave of kidnappings across Nigeria, including an incident that occurred on the outskirts of the capital Abuja this month. Armed gangs have been routinely kidnapping villagers, travelers on the roads, and students for ransom, while Africa's most populous country suffers from widespread insecurity, which also includes a long-standing armed Islamic insurgency in the northeastern part of the country.
