Farmers abducted in attack on Nigerian village near Boko Haram stronghold

7th December 2025

2 minutes read

Farmers abducted in attack on Nigerian village near Boko Haram stronghold

Thirteen farmers were kidnapped in Nigeria’s troubled northeast during an attack carried out by gunmen on a village close to a stronghold of the terrorist group Boko Haram.

Over the past two weeks, a series of large-scale abductions has taken place in Nigeria, including the kidnapping of more than 300 students from a Catholic school in Niger State, and 38 worshippers from a church in Kwara State, all of whom were later released.

The head of the local authority in Konduga told AFP that “unidentified gunmen stormed the village of Malari and abducted fourteen onion farmers,” noting that one of the captives later managed to escape.

The farmers had stayed in the fields overnight to water their crops and watch over their livestock.

Konduga is located about 35 kilometers from Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State.

Borno has witnessed attacks by the terrorist group Boko Haram for sixteen years.

Nigeria has a long record of mass kidnappings, often carried out by gangs seeking ransom payments and targeting vulnerable populations.

Although, in recent years, most of the abductions carried out by so-called bandit groups in exchange for ransom were concentrated in northwestern and central Nigeria, similar incidents have recently been reported in the northeast.

Tijani Ahmed, a commander of an anti-terrorist militia in the Konduga area, said the kidnappers contacted families to demand ransom payments.

A few days ago, Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu declared a nationwide security emergency and ordered the recruitment of tens of thousands of new police and military personnel.

The wave of kidnappings coincides with comments made by U.S. President Donald Trump, who claimed that Christians in Nigeria are being killed by “terrorists,” while the Nigerian government maintains that both Muslims and Christians are affected and that ransom demands are the primary driver behind the abductions.

Earlier this month, the Nigerian presidency announced the appointment of General Christopher Musa, former Chief of Army Staff, as Minister of Defense, following the resignation of his predecessor, Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, aged 63, for health reasons.

In a message to the Senate, President Bola Tinubu expressed confidence in General Musa’s ability to lead the Ministry of Defense and strengthen Nigeria’s security framework, according to a statement by the president’s special adviser, Bayo Onanuga.