Video shows 600 people abducted in Nigeria mosque attack

An armed group has posted a video showing what residents said were about 600 ‌women, children and older people abducted in an attack on a mosque in Nigeria’s north-central Niger State last week.

The video, posted on Sunday on Facebook and WhatsApp, showed large groups of people seated in a forested area surrounded by armed men. Several children could be heard crying in the background.

Mass kidnappings for ransom have become common in parts of northwestern and north-central Nigeria, where heavily armed gangs frequently raid villages, ⁠schools and highways and hold them until paid large sums of money. Gunmen have increasingly expanded south, beyond hotspots in the north.

The video surfaced two days after the latest kidnapping when gunmen attacked worshippers at the mosque in Dekara village during Friday prayers, taking people away in what residents said were simultaneous raids on several communities.

In the video, a gunman speaking in Hausa addressed families of the captives and urged them to identify relatives among the people in the footage.

"These are all your people. We are showing you this video so that you can identify your family members, your fathers, mothers, children and relatives," the gunman said.