When Musa Abdullahi Wakawa learned that his wife and seven-year-old son had been abducted, disbelief quickly gave way to fear.
asserted
disbelief → learn → fear
Then came the question confronting many families caught in Nigeria’s kidnapping crisis: How could he raise the ransom demanded for their release?
uncertain
he → come → release
For days, Musa searched for a way to bring his family home, confronting the financial burden imposed by the kidnappers.
asserted
Musa → search → kidnappers
Across northeastern Nigeria, families sell livestock, seek loans, dispose of property and exhaust savings in the hope of securing the release of loved ones.
asserted
families → sell → ones
In Borno State, kidnapping has become more than a security threat.
asserted
kidnapping → become → threat
Families are losing money, living with the trauma of abduction and, in some communities, keeping their children away from school.
asserted
Families → lose → school
Laraba Dauda, 45, still remembers the last conversation she had with her younger sister.
asserted
she → remember → sister
Her sister was abducted on January 13, 2026, along the Biu–Buratai road, according to Laraba.
uncertain
sister → abduct → Laraba
Shortly after the abduction, the phone rang.
asserted
phone → ring → abduction
Her sister was calling from somewhere in the bush.
asserted
sister → call → bush
“Aunty, unknown people have kidnapped us and taken us somewhere in the bush.
asserted
people → kidnap → bush
We don’t know where they are taking us.
asserted
they → know → us
At this moment, Aunty, please just help me with your prayers,” Laraba recalled her sister saying.
asserted
sister → help → prayers
The call ended in tears.
asserted
call → end → tears
Her sister has not returned home.
asserted
sister → return → ?
Months later, Laraba and her family still do not know where she is being held or whether she is safe.
asserted
she → know → ?
Laraba is calling on the Nigerian government to intensify efforts to rescue those still in captivity.
“We need the government to come to our aid and help rescue our relatives who have spent more than six months in captivity,” she said.
asserted
she → call → captivity
A journey that never reached Maiduguri
For Anjikwi Hena, his son’s disappearance came just as the family was looking towards a better future.
asserted
family → reach → future
His son was abducted on March 30, 2026, according to Hena.
uncertain
son → abduct → Hena
He had completed his education and was preparing to travel to Maiduguri in search of work.
asserted
He → complete → work
His father encouraged him and prayed for his success.
asserted
father → encourage → success
Instead, the young man disappeared into captivity.
asserted
man → disappear → captivity
Hena said their close relationship has made the uncertainty especially painful.
asserted
uncertainty → say → ?
When schools become unsafe
The kidnapping crisis is also threatening education in communities already weakened by years of rebellion.
asserted
crisis → become → rebellion
In Askira-Uba Local Government Area of Borno State, only 56 of 113 primary schools are currently functioning, according to Fasuma Askira, the local government education secretary.
uncertain
schools → function → Askira
Before the May attack in Mussa, 76 primary schools were operating.
uncertain
schools → operate → Mussa
The threat of violence subsequently forced authorities to close another 20, leaving only 56 functioning.
asserted
threat → force → 56
On May 15, suspected rebel fighters attacked Mussa and abducted dozens of children.
uncertain
fighters → suspect → children
A register later obtained by news services identified 40 missing children, although figures provided by the community and government have varied.
asserted
figures → obtain → community
The Borno State government has more recently referred to about 44 children still missing from Mussa.
asserted
government → refer → Mussa
Then, on June 29, armed rebels attacked the Government Day Secondary School in Lassa while students were taking National Examinations Council examinations.
asserted
students → attack → examinations
Some students were recovered shortly after the attack, but 36 students and a teacher have been reported as remaining in captivity.
asserted
students → recover → captivity
The attacks have deepened fears among parents and teachers already living with the threat of rebel violence.
asserted
attacks → deepen → violence
The education authority moved junior secondary students from Mussa to a government boarding school in Uba and advised the local government to deploy community vigilantes around schools.
asserted
authority → move → schools
Soldiers have also been deployed in Mussa and Lassa alongside local vigilantes, according to the Askira.
uncertain
Soldiers → deploy → Askira
For families in these communities, keeping children in school now means weighing access to education against the risk of further attacks.
asserted
keeping → keep → attacks
Borno’s crisis reflects a national problem
The situation in Borno is part of a wider kidnapping crisis across Nigeria.
asserted
situation → reflect → Nigeria
Amnesty International Nigeria says at least 1,100 people were abducted across the country between January and April 2026, while warning that the actual figure could be considerably higher because many incidents in remote communities go unreported.
“Apart from killing people, gunmen are now on a rampage of abductions, largely for lucrative ransom,” said Isa Sanusi, director of Amnesty International Nigeria.
“Some stay months at the mercy of gunmen in punishing situations.
uncertain
Some → say → situations
Amnesty says victims can face torture, starvation and sexual violence, while families are often forced to raise money under extreme pressure.
asserted
families → say → pressure
The organisation has also warned that fear of abduction is pushing children out of school, particularly in rural communities.
asserted
fear → warn → communities
…and 24 more, not listed.
The Aporia
