Video shows hundreds held captive after Nigeria mosque kidnapping

Nigerian millitary take part in a security drill in Nigeria as mass kidnappings become more common in some parts. Photograph: AFP/Getty ImagesView image in fullscreenNigerian millitary take part in a security drill in Nigeria as mass kidnappings become more common in some parts.

Gunmen ‌attacked worshippers in Dekara village on Friday taking women, children and older people.

An armed group has posted a video showing what ⁠residents said were about ⁠600 women, children and ​older people abducted in an attack on a mosque in Nigeria’s north-central Niger State last week.

Mass kidnappings for ransom have become common in ⁠parts of north-western and north-central Nigeria, where heavily armed gangs frequently raid villages, schools and highways and hold them until ​paid large sums of money.

The violence was previously focused in the north of the country, but gunmen have ‌increasingly moved south.

The video surfaced two days after the latest kidnapping, when gunmen ‌attacked worshippers at the mosque in Dekara village during Friday prayers, taking people away in what residents said were simultaneous raids on several communities.

Reuters could not verify the exact date or the location where the video was filmed. However, no older version of the video was found posted ​online before Sunday.

Four residents said they were able to confirm the identities of some of those seized.

Another resident, Abdulmutallib Muqaddas Dindi, said those who appeared in the video had been seized during the prayers. “We have ⁠identified our elders, relatives, and some of us have seen their wives and children ​in the video,” he said.

Police ​and state authorities did not respond ​to requests for comment on Monday. Police had earlier confirmed an attack on worshippers in ​the area but said ‌they could not ​verify the number of people ​abducted.