In a brazen attack highlighting Nigeria's deepening security crisis, armed gangs kidnapped 163 Christian worshippers after storming two churches during Sunday mass. The incident occurred in the northern Kaduna State, an area repeatedly plagued by violence.
Details of the Sunday Mass Abductions
The attack unfolded in Kurmin Wali village, located in the predominantly Christian Kajuru district. Reverend Joseph Hayab, head of the Christian Association of Nigeria for the country's north, provided a harrowing account. "The attackers came in numbers and blocked the entrance of the churches and forced the worshippers out into the bush," he stated on Monday.
Hayab, who is based in Kaduna city, revealed the precise figures: "The actual number they took was 172 but nine escaped, so 163 are with them." This mass abduction is the latest in a relentless wave of kidnappings targeting both Christians and Muslims across the nation. Police authorities in Kaduna state have not yet issued an official comment on the matter.
A Structured Industry of Ransom and Violence
The perpetrators are part of criminal networks locally referred to as 'bandits'. These groups routinely carry out mass kidnappings for ransom, alongside looting villages, primarily in Nigeria's northern and central regions. The crisis has evolved far beyond sporadic violence.
According to a recent report by Lagos-based consultancy SBM Intelligence, kidnapping in Nigeria has "consolidated into a structured, profit-seeking industry." The report estimates this illicit trade raised approximately $1.66 million (£1.24 million) in ransom payments between July 2024 and June 2025.
This incident follows the abduction of more than 300 students and teachers from a Catholic school in Niger state last November. Those victims were released weeks later in two batches, presumably after ransom negotiations.
International Tensions and Government Denials
The kidnapping epidemic occurs against a backdrop of heightened international concern and diplomatic friction. The United States and Nigeria have been locked in a dispute over the characterisation of the violence. Former US President Donald Trump has previously described the situation as a mass killing of Christians within the country's armed conflicts.
However, the Nigerian government has firmly rejected this framing, denying that the escalating security crises constitute a "Christian genocide." In a related development, in late December, the US conducted strikes on targets it described, in coordination with the Nigerian government, as militants linked to the Islamic State group.
The abduction of 163 worshippers in Kaduna underscores the severe and ongoing threat to civilian life in parts of Nigeria, where criminal enterprise and ideological conflict create a perilous environment for communities.
