'Over 2000 Nigerians Fled To Benin Republic’ - Amnesty International Knocks Tinubu Govt Over Mass Abductions In Niger State
Amnesty International reported that over 2,000 Nigerians from Niger State have fled to Benin Republic following mass abductions by bandits, urging President Bola Tinubu's government to address the escalating insecurity. The organization highlighted that over 1,100 people were abducted in northern Nigeria between January and April 2026, with victims often subjected to torture, rape, and other atrocities.
Why it matters
This report underscores a severe humanitarian crisis and worsening insecurity in northern Nigeria, leading to mass displacement and human rights abuses, demanding urgent government intervention and international attention.
Amnesty International said the scale of the attacks required urgent intervention from the Nigerian government, particularly President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
At least 2000 residents of Dekera District in Niger State have fled Nigeria for neighbouring Benin Republic following attacks in which hundreds of people were reportedly abducted by bandits during raids on mosques, the Amnesty International has said.
The global human rights organisation, in a statement on Friday, said the mass displacement followed attacks last Friday, August 21, raising fresh concerns over the worsening insecurity and abduction crisis affecting rural communities in northern Nigeria.
“At least 2,000 people from Dekera district in Nigeria’s Niger State have fled into neighbouring Benin after the attacks last Friday in which hundreds of people were abducted during a raid by gunmen on mosques in the area,” Amnesty International said.
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