Seventeen students rescued in Kogi as security teams continue search for remaining victims

By Sadiq Abdulfatah

Security operatives in Kogi State have rescued 17 pupils kidnapped from an Islamic school, while nine other captives, including two women, are yet to regain freedom.

The pupils were freed after coordinated operations by security agencies launched days after the abduction, which was reported on April 27.

Names of those rescued include Sultan, Zeidah, Ahmed, Yusuf, Farooq, Museen, Mustapha, Hasheem, Mohammed, Toheer, Abdulmumin, Abdulazeem, Mahmud, Ameerah, Firdaus, Tabarakallah, and Ibrahim.

Those still in captivity are Habibullah, Shakir, Ahmed, Abdulhammed, Mubarak, Sultannah, Zulaiha, and two women, Nana-Hawa and Halimat, said to be wives of the proprietor of the Islamic school.

Security teams have now intensified efforts to secure the release of the remaining victims, with officers searching surrounding forests and tracing the kidnappers’ movements.

More personnel have also been deployed to strategic locations, while stop-and-search checks continue along major roads, including Kabba Junction and Zariagi.

The victims were among students taken from an orphanage-linked Islamic school in Zariagi, Lokoja, Kogi State.

State authorities said the Islamic school was operating illegally.

The incident has again highlighted growing concerns over the safety of children in schools and Islamic learning centres affected by insecurity in Nigeria.

Source: Daily Post