Nigeria Launches Manhunt After Gunmen Abduct Hundreds From Niger State Mosques
The National Mosque in Abuja, Nigeria (file photo; not the mosque targeted in this attack). Photo: Vivee18, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Nigerian security forces have launched a coordinated rescue operation after gunmen abducted an estimated 600 worshippers from mosques near Dekera village in Niger State, with around 30 people reported killed in the attacks.
Gunmen abducted an estimated 600 worshippers from mosques around Dekera village in north-central Niger State, Nigeria, in a coordinated attack in late August 2026 that also left roughly 30 people dead.
President Bola Tinubu ordered the armed forces, police and state security services to launch an immediate, coordinated rescue operation, and asked to be briefed regularly until every abductee is found. Military and security operations began the following Wednesday, and roughly 2,000 residents fled across the border into neighboring Benin in the attack's aftermath.
A video released by the kidnappers showed a large group of captives being held by armed men in a forested area, though no formal ransom demand had been confirmed as of this report. Security analysts say a ransom demand is likely to follow, in line with a pattern of mass abductions that has repeatedly struck schools, churches and mosques across Nigeria's north in recent years.
The Nigerian government has condemned what it called a "cowardly attack" and pledged to bring those responsible to justice. As of this report, the rescue operation remains active and the fate of most of those abducted is unknown.