Armed Men Kidnap 13 Women and a Baby in Overnight Raid in Sokoto
Armed men have kidnapped 13 women and a baby during a late-night raid on Chacho village in Sokoto State, including a bride and 10 of her bridesmaids, residents told AFP on Sunday.
The attack adds to a disturbing surge of abductions across Nigeria in recent weeks, placing renewed pressure on the government as communities grapple with escalating insecurity driven by both jihadist factions and criminal gangs known locally as bandits.
A Bride and Her Bridesmaids Taken
According to resident Aliyu Abdullahi, the armed bandits stormed the village on Saturday night and abducted 14 people.
“Bandits stormed our village last night and kidnapped 14 persons, including a bride and 10 bridesmaids from a house in Zango neighbourhood,”
— Aliyu Abdullahi, resident of Chacho village.
In this part of northern Nigeria, tradition dictates that a newlywed bride spends the first night with her bridesmaids in her new home. The husband joins later, a cultural practice that left the women gathered together when the attackers struck.
Abdullahi said a baby, the baby’s mother, and another woman were also abducted.
A Region Under Siege
The attack comes amid widespread kidnappings across Nigeria, pushing President Bola Tinubu to declare a nationwide emergency on insecurity earlier in the week.
An intelligence report seen by AFP described a sharp rise in abductions in November:
“Sokoto witnessed a notable uptick in bandit-initiated abductions in November, culminating in the highest number of such attacks in the past year,”
— Nigerian Intelligence Report.
Security experts believe peace deals struck by some neighbouring states may have unintentionally emboldened the gangs, allowing them to regroup while shifting their operations into less-defended areas like Sokoto.
Recurring Terror in Chacho
This is not the first time Chacho village has been targeted. Abdullahi revealed that bandits attacked the community in October, kidnapping 13 residents—a release reportedly secured through ransom payments.
“We had to pay ransom to secure the freedom. Now, we are faced with the same situation,”
— Abdullahi added.
Wider National Concern
Nigeria has struggled with mass abductions since the 2014 Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping by Boko Haram, which sparked global outrage. Today, both jihadist insurgents and bandit networks operate across vast areas of the country’s northwest and central zones, executing kidnappings for ransom, village raids, killings, and arson.
International attention flared again this week, with former U.S. President Donald Trump threatening military intervention over what he described as the killing of Christians by radical Islamist groups.
