More than 160 worshipers were abducted in Islamist raids on three churches in Kaduna State, Middle Belt Nigeria, on Sunday, January 18.
The three churches are all located in the village of Kurmin Wali, Kajuru Local Government Area.
Barnabas Aid contacts confirmed that the abduction was carried out by Fulani Islamists.
Children as young as six were among 177 believers kidnapped by the Islamists. Eleven of those taken are reported to have escaped.
The youngest victim is six-year-old Salvation Idris; the oldest is Augustina Matthew, 71. In some cases 12 or 13 members of the same extended family were taken by the terrorists.
Both police and local authorities at first denied reports of the mass abductions, only confirming the incident in the days that followed.
“If the security agents had gone after the bandits, they would have prevented them from taking the victims to where they are now hiding,” said John Joseph Hayab, Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria in the country’s north.
Read more: What is Happening in Nigeria?
“Had they pursued the attackers immediately, instead of arguing over whether anyone had, indeed, been kidnapped, they would have chased them away,” he added.
Pastor Hayab has previously added his voice to warnings by Nigerian church leaders that a “genocide” of Christians is taking place in Nigeria.
In July 2025 Steven Kefas, a security expert from Kaduna State, argued that Fulani militia groups were responsible for 47% of all civilian killings in Nigeria.
“This isn’t random violence,” said Kefas. “It’s systematic ethnic cleansing aimed at reshaping demographic landscapes.”
How You Can Pray
Please pray urgently for the release of our brothers and sisters. Ask that once released they will recover well from mental trauma and any physical injury. Pray that the Lord will bring an end to the abductions and killings carried out by Islamist terrorists across northern and Middle Belt Nigeria.
