Nigeria: treating over three hundred traumatised kidnap victims

308 kidnapping victims have been rescued from captivity in Nigeria, including 163 people abducted when suspected jihadists attacked the village of Woro in February, killing at least 165 people. Many of those freed had spent six months in harsh conditions in a national park forest and are now receiving hospital treatment in Ilorin. Doctors reported severe malnutrition, skin diseases, fractures and considerable psychological trauma, with some children requiring intensive care and blood transfusions. Survivors described enduring hunger and beatings and being forced to bury fellow captives who died. Women gave birth in the forest without medical assistance, including some shortly before the rescue. The captives had been held alongside people kidnapped from other communities. Mass abductions for ransom remain a serious security problem across northern and central Nigeria, where jihadist organisations and armed criminal groups operate amid continuing instability. Medical teams say the rescued victims are responding to treatment.

Pray: for healing, comfort and restoration for those traumatised by prolonged captivity. (Psalm 147:3)
More: https://www.africanews.com/2026/08/13/nigerias-rescued-kidnap-victims-face-physical-and-psychological-toll/