In a harrowing early morning raid on Monday, gunmen from a criminal gang stormed the Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School in Kebbi state, northwestern Nigeria, kidnapping 25 schoolgirls and killing a staff member. Armed with sophisticated weapons, the assailants breached the school’s defenses, abducting the students and fleeing to an unknown location. The attack has reignited fears of a spiraling kidnapping crisis in Nigeria, reminiscent of the infamous 2014 Chibok abduction, where 276 girls were taken by Boko Haram insurgents. Police, military units, and local vigilantes have launched a manhunt to rescue the abducted students and apprehend the perpetrators. This incident marks the second mass school abduction in Kebbi in four years, following a 2021 attack where over 100 students and staff were taken. The region has become a hotspot for kidnappings, with heavily armed gangs exploiting the security vacuum to terrorize communities. Despite efforts by authorities to negotiate peace deals and deploy vigilante groups, the kidnapping crisis continues to escalate, leaving families and communities in despair. Nigeria’s northwest, plagued by armed violence and banditry, remains the epicenter of this growing humanitarian and security crisis.