In the footage, which was widely shared on Facebook, some of the students looked visibly distressed. In a video, a kidnapped student asks the government to cooperate with his captors, while a figure in the background points a gun at his head and back.
The students were among 39 kidnapped on Thursday night after gunmen attacked the Federal College of Forest Mechanization in Mando, Kaduna, according to Kaduna police.
The students, who were forcibly removed from their hostels – some of them in sleepwear – could be seen on the video asking the government to be diplomatic in engaging with the gunmen.
The student asking for cooperation, whose surname is Emmanuel, also says that a blunt rescue operation will have serious consequences on the part of the criminal gang. He added that “many of us here have been injured – seriously injured … time is running out … most of us here are in poor health.”
It was not clear whether the heavily armed hijackers, dressed in military uniforms, made any ransom requests.
Muhammed Jalige, a police spokesman in Kaduna, told CNN on Sunday that the force was unaware of any monetary demands made by the attackers.
“We are not aware of that. Even if they make any request, it will be through the school administration,” said Jalige, confirming the authenticity of the video.
“The video is very authentic. The bandits used one of the kidnapped victims to record the video, ”he said.
Jalige said paying a ransom was not an option.
“Nobody is ready to think about it. Fighting the bad guys and getting the students out of there is what we are trying to do,” he said.
The Federal College of Forestry and Mechanization is a higher education institution located in Afaka, a forest community close to the military barracks of the Defense Academy of Nigeria. College students, aged between 19 and 25, specialize in agricultural studies.
In a statement on Friday, Samuel Aruwan, commissioner of the Kaduna State Ministry of Homeland Security and Internal Affairs, said 180 students were rescued by soldiers who “engaged the armed bandits”.
“The troops have successfully rescued 180 citizens; 42 female students, eight employees and 130 male students … about 30 students, a mixture of men and women, have not yet been counted,” the statement said.
Jalige told CNN on Sunday morning that 39 students are still being held by the bandits and that a rescue team is working to secure the release of the students without any victims.
“We have created a joint operation with other sister security agencies with the aim of rescuing the victims of kidnapping unharmed,” said the police spokesman.
Daniel Atep, a student leader who runs a college agriculture student association, told CNN that he recognized almost everyone in the viral video and identified one of the captives.
“I pretty much know everyone in that video,” said Atep, who also corroborated the police’s claim that the kidnappers used one of the victims to film the request for help.
Atep added that no security measures were implemented by the school management to ensure the safety of students in the hostels, where most students live, before the attack.
Another student, Zainab Umar, told CNN that her roommate was also seen in the video
An aide to President Muhammadu Buhari released a statement on Saturday applauding the “initial military response that resulted in the rescue of 180 students, including eight team members” and demanded the safe release of the other students.
Buhari said his government would not allow “the destruction of the school system” by “gangsters who target schools”.
Kidnapping Remains Abundant in Northern Nigeria
More than 300 students were kidnapped from a school in Zamfara state, also in northwest Nigeria, earlier this month.
At least 42 people were kidnapped from a state school last month in Kagara, in the state of Niger, and then released, and more than 300 students were arrested and then released in December.
Kidnapping for ransom is common in parts of Nigeria and has become a major security challenge. State governors pay ransoms regularly to ensure the safety of victims, but rarely admit to doing so.
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari recently told state governors to review “their policy of rewarding bad guys with money and vehicles”, saying the policy “could backfire with potentially disastrous consequences”. Buhari also asked governors to work hard to ensure the safety of their schools.