An aerial photograph shows Kurmin Wali, Nigeria, on Tuesday, where churches were attacked by gunmen and people were kidnapped. Afiniki Moses, who escaped an attempted kidnapping while her husband was abducted during an attack by gunmen on a church, speaks to reporters in Kurmin Wali, Nigeria, on Tuesday. “Subsequent verification from operational units and intelligence sources has confirmed that the incident did occur.”A Christian grouping in northern Nigeria has submitted a list of people seized. Gangs — known in Nigeria as “bandits” — frequently carry out mass kidnappings for ransom and loot villages, mainly in the northern and central parts of Africa’s most populous country. Roughly evenly split between a mostly Christian south and Muslim-majority north, Nigeria is home to myriad conflicts, which experts say kill Christians and Muslims, often without distinction.

Source: Taipei Times January 21, 2026 21:44 UTC