Bride and Wedding Party Among 14 Abducted in Sokoto Village
Armed terrorists struck the village of Chacho in Sokoto State, kidnapping 14 people including a newlywed bride, ten bridesmaids, and a baby during an overnight raid from Saturday to Sunday. This latest mass abduction adds to the growing security crisis gripping northwest Nigeria.
Aliyu Abdullahi, a local resident, confirmed to AFP that bandits stormed the Zango neighborhood and abducted the wedding party along with the baby, the infant's mother, and another woman. The attack represents another devastating blow to rural communities already struggling with frequent bandit violence.
Traditional Wedding Night Turns Tragic
According to local tradition in this region of Nigeria, young brides typically spend their first married night with their bridesmaids in their new home, with the husband joining them later. This cultural practice made the entire wedding party vulnerable to the coordinated attack.
The kidnapping follows a similar pattern witnessed in October when Chacho village was previously targeted, resulting in 13 abductions. We had to pay ransom to secure their freedom. Now, we are faced with the same situation, Abdullahi lamented during his phone interview with AFP.
Escalating Security Crisis Across Nigeria
This incident occurs amid a dramatic increase in mass abductions across Nigeria. Recent weeks have seen hundreds of citizens kidnapped by both jihadist groups and criminal gangs locally known as bandits. The situation has become so severe that President Bola Tinubu declared a nationwide state of emergency on Wednesday.
An intelligence report obtained by AFP indicates that Sokoto witnessed a notable uptick in bandit-initiated abductions in November, recording the highest number of such attacks in the past year. Security analysts suggest this increase may be partly due to peace agreements in neighboring states that have displaced bandit activity into areas with less military presence.
The report further warned that this shift can lead to more mass kidnappings in places like Sokoto, resulting in increased kidnap-for-ransom attacks. Security experts have frequently criticized these regional agreements, arguing they allow criminal gangs to consolidate power in their hideouts while expanding operations to new territories.
Nigeria's abduction crisis gained international attention following the 2014 Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping, but has since evolved into a widespread criminal enterprise affecting numerous communities across the northwest and central regions. Bandit gangs now systematically carry out kidnappings for ransom while also attacking villages, killing inhabitants, and burning homes after looting them.
