By Joshua Tosin Ogunsakin 
Amnesty International has raised fresh concerns over the worsening security situation in northern Nigeria, revealing that at least 1,100 people were abducted between January and April 2026.
In a statement shared on Sunday on its X page, the organisation called on the Federal Government, led by Bola Tinubu, to take urgent and decisive action to curb the rising wave of kidnappings, particularly targeting rural communities and internally displaced persons (IDPs).
The group described the trend as alarming, noting that victims are often subjected to severe abuse, including torture, starvation, rape and forced involvement in violent activities.
“Apart from killing people, gunmen are now on a rampage of abductions, largely for lucrative ransom. Some stay months at the mercy of gunmen in punishing situations.
“Estimates of the number of abductions by gunmen and armed groups across Nigeria vary, and some of the commonly cited figures vastly understate the scale of the problem,” said Director of Amnesty International Nigeria, Isa Sanusi.
“Gunmen are increasingly shifting from killings to large-scale abductions, largely driven by ransom demands. Many victims spend months in captivity under harsh and inhumane conditions,” the organisation stated.
Amnesty International Nigeria Director Isa Sanusi, said available figures may even underrepresent the scale of the crisis, stressing that the situation is far worse than widely reported.
The organisation highlighted several incidents across affected states. These include a February 3 attack on Woro village in Kaiama Local Government Area of Kwara State, where about 200 people were reportedly killed and 176 abducted.
It also cited the abduction of 150 persons in early April in Bukkuyum Local Government Area of Zamfara State, as well as the kidnapping of over 100 displaced persons by Boko Haram fighters near Mafa in Borno State in March.
According to the report, more than 400 people were abducted in Ngoshe, Gwoza Local Government Area of Borno State, on March 3, while 57 others were kidnapped in Niger State in January.
Other cases include the abduction of 18 passengers travelling from Abuja to Sokoto on March 30 along Mayanci in Zamfara State, and a February 19 incident where 92 people were kidnapped in separate attacks across Anka and Tsafe local government areas.
The group further recalled a January 18 attack in Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna State, where gunmen stormed three churches during a morning service at Kurmin Wali village, abducting at least 166 worshippers, who were later released.
A resident of Woro community, quoted in the report, described the ordeal, saying the attackers not only killed residents but also abducted 176 people, including his wife and three daughters, one of whom is just two years old.
Amnesty International warned that the surge in abductions is pushing families into severe economic hardship, as many are forced to sell their belongings or rely on community fundraising to pay ransoms.
“In almost all cases of these abductions, people were also killed, homes and shops looted and razed. In some cases, families must dispose of everything they have to pay ransom, while villages often crowdsource to rescue their people.
“Those who could not pay are sometimes either killed, disappeared or tortured more. What we are witnessing right now in the northern part of Nigeria is a crisis of abduction that increasingly endangers lives,” Sanusi said, adding that the crisis is increasingly endangering lives across the region.
The organisation also noted that the persistent threat of abduction is disrupting education, with many children withdrawn from school, while some underage girls are forced into early marriage in a bid to avoid being targeted.
It criticised Nigerian authorities for failing to meet their constitutional and international obligations to protect citizens, describing the situation as a serious breach of human rights commitments.
“This failure by the authorities to promote and ensure the security and safety of the population constitutes a serious breach of their human rights obligations, including under the Nigerian Constitution and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, to which Nigeria is a state party,” Sanusi added.