Gunmen raided three villages in northwest Nigeria on Friday (May 10) night, kidnapping more than 100 people, the news agency Reuters reported on Saturday citing a district official and residents.

Gunmen raided three villages in northwest Nigeria on Friday (May 10) night, kidnapping more than 100 people, the news agency Reuters reported on Saturday citing a district official and residents. Alhaji Bala, head of a district in the Birnin-Magaji local government area of Zamfara, told Reuters that gunmen attacked the villages of Gora, Madomawa, and Jambuzu. Bala added that 38 men and 67 women and children were missing. "But the number of people abducted could be more than that," he added. Reuters reported that Zamfara has been a hotspot for kidnapping gangs who carry out attacks and retreat into forests where they have set up camps. Gunmen arrived on bikes, shot sporadically Madomawa village head Aminu Aliyu Asha said on Saturday that gunmen arrived in his village on motorbikes and shot sporadically before kidnapping several people. Also read | Over 200 abducted schoolchildren in northwestern Nigeria freed after two weeks "The abduction breaches the peace agreement between us and bandits. In February this year, we made several ransom payments in order to stop them from attacking our territory," Asha added. A resident from Madomawa said that his two brothers were among those abducted, while another resident, said that among the abducted were 15 passengers in a lorry that was passing through Gora, Madomawa, and Jambuzu. Kidnapping has become endemic in northwest region Kidnapping incidents have become endemic in Nigeria's northwest region, as gangs are abducting people from villages, highways, and schools, and demanding ransom money from their relatives. Mass kidnappings were first carried out by Boko Haram but now the practice has been adopted by armed gangs with no known ideological affiliation and has grown as Nigerians grapple with economic hardship. Also watch | Tanker explosion in Nigeria: People stranded for hours, many trapped in their vehicle × Friday's kidnappings came a day after at least nine students were kidnapped from their classrooms by gunmen at the Confluence University of Science and Technology in the state of Kogi. Kingsley Femi Fanwo, Kogi's information commissioner, said the students were studying when gunmen attacked the university on Thursday night. (With inputs from agencies)

Kidnapping endemic in Nigeria: Gunmen abduct over 100 during raids on three villages

At least 287 people were taken hostage by gunmen on Thursday, March 7, when they broke into a school in the northwest of the country, according to the headmaster, who informed authorities that this was the country's second mass kidnapping in less than a week. The Nigerian Army has been now deployed to rescue the children.

Nigeria deploys Army to rescue kidnapped students as 287 students get abducted by gunmen

Five female Nigerian university students have been abducted at gunpoint in the northwestern state of katsina. They were all abducted from the federal university in Dutsin-Ma town. Police say all assets have been deployed to make sure the victims come out unharmed.

Kidnappings on the rise in Nigeria, five university students become latest victim

Nigerian gunmen have freed the remaining pupils from more than 100 kidnapped from an Islamic seminary in northwestern Niger State nearly three months ago, the school's head teacher said on Thursday.

Heavily armed criminals snatched 136 pupils from the seminary in Tegina on May 30 in one of a series of mass abductions targeting schools and colleges in&nbsp;Nigeria&nbsp;since December.

Six of the pupils died in captivity and a further 15 escaped in June, according to school officials.

"The pupils have all been released. We are now conveying them home," seminary head Abubakar Alhassan told AFP by telephone.

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"I can't give you an exact number now. We will have to screen them when we get home. But none of the pupils is in captivity."

He did not give any details about how the pupils were released or say if a ransom was paid.&nbsp;

One of the parents, Fati Abdullahi, whose 18-year-old daughter and 15-year-old son were among the captives, confirmed the pupils were free.&nbsp;

"We have been in touch with those bringing them home on the phone. We have been tracking their journey home," Abdullahi said. "We are anxious to see them."

Growing violence

Northwest and central&nbsp;Nigeria&nbsp;have seen a surge in attacks, looting and mass abductions by criminal gangs known locally as bandits. But gangs this year began targeting schoolchildren and students as a way to squeeze out more ransom payments.

Around 1,000 students have been kidnapped since December after gangs started to hit schools. Most have been released after negotiations, but scores are still being held in forest camps.

Gunmen who kidnapped more than 100 students from a Baptist high school in northwestern Kaduna State released 15 more of those hostages after collecting ransom, a representative of the families said on Sunday.

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During the Tegina seminary kidnapping in May, around 200 motorcycle-riding gunmen stormed the town in Niger State's Rafi district, transporting the pupils to their rural hideout.

In August, an envoy sent to deliver a ransom payment was himself held captive for a week by the bandits before he was released with a demand for more money.

Just last week, the kidnappers had called the school to send more clothes for the children who had been wearing the same tattered clothing for months.

Violence in northwest and central&nbsp;Nigeria&nbsp;has its roots in years-long tensions and tit-for-tat armed raids between farmers and nomadic herders over grazing land and water resources.

But insecurity has worsened as criminal gangs emerged involved in cattle rustling, looting villages and mass kidnapping. Most of them are based in vast forests across Kaduna, Katsina, Niger and Zamfara states.

President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered military operations and air strikes on bandit camps but attacks have not stopped. Some local governors have attempted amnesty deals with the bandits but most have failed.&nbsp;

Nigerian gunmen have freed the remaining pupils from more than 100 kidnapped from an Islamic seminary in northwestern Niger State nearly three months ago, the school's head teacher said on Thursday.

Nigerian gunmen have freed the remaining pupils from more than 100 kidnapped from an Islamic seminary in northwestern Niger State nearly three months ago, the school's head teacher said on Thursday. Heavily armed criminals snatched 136 pupils from the seminary in Tegina on May 30 in one of a series of mass abductions targeting schools and colleges in Nigeria since December. Six of the pupils died in captivity and a further 15 escaped in June, according to school officials. "The pupils have all been released. We are now conveying them home," seminary head Abubakar Alhassan told AFP by telephone. ALSO READ | 'Will hunt you down': Joe Biden warns Kabul bombers, vows to avenge deaths of US soldiers "I can't give you an exact number now. We will have to screen them when we get home. But none of the pupils is in captivity." He did not give any details about how the pupils were released or say if a ransom was paid. One of the parents, Fati Abdullahi, whose 18-year-old daughter and 15-year-old son were among the captives, confirmed the pupils were free. "We have been in touch with those bringing them home on the phone. We have been tracking their journey home," Abdullahi said. "We are anxious to see them." Growing violence Northwest and central Nigeria have seen a surge in attacks, looting and mass abductions by criminal gangs known locally as bandits. But gangs this year began targeting schoolchildren and students as a way to squeeze out more ransom payments. Around 1,000 students have been kidnapped since December after gangs started to hit schools. Most have been released after negotiations, but scores are still being held in forest camps. Gunmen who kidnapped more than 100 students from a Baptist high school in northwestern Kaduna State released 15 more of those hostages after collecting ransom, a representative of the families said on Sunday. ALSO READ | Pakistan is second home to the Taliban, says spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid During the Tegina seminary kidnapping in May, around 200 motorcycle-riding gunmen stormed the town in Niger State's Rafi district, transporting the pupils to their rural hideout. In August, an envoy sent to deliver a ransom payment was himself held captive for a week by the bandits before he was released with a demand for more money. Just last week, the kidnappers had called the school to send more clothes for the children who had been wearing the same tattered clothing for months. Violence in northwest and central Nigeria has its roots in years-long tensions and tit-for-tat armed raids between farmers and nomadic herders over grazing land and water resources. But insecurity has worsened as criminal gangs emerged involved in cattle rustling, looting villages and mass kidnapping. Most of them are based in vast forests across Kaduna, Katsina, Niger and Zamfara states. President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered military operations and air strikes on bandit camps but attacks have not stopped. Some local governors have attempted amnesty deals with the bandits but most have failed.

Nigerian gunmen free dozens of kidnapped seminary pupils, says teacher

Gunmen seized more than 300 girls in a night-time raid on a school in northwest Nigeria on Friday (February 26). According to the latest reports, kidnapped schoolgirls are freed now.

Reports: 317 kidnapped schoolgirls freed in Nigeria

317 girls students from Zamfara state were kidnapped a few days back. However, one of them managed to escape from the abductors and describes her horrific experience. More than 100 girls are still missing.

Parents wait and pray for more than 300 kidnapped schoolgirls

Gunmen in Nigeria on Saturday released 42 people, including 27 students, who were kidnapped from a boarding school last week in the north-central state of Niger, the state's governor said.

School children abducted in Nigeria's Niger state released

Gunmen have abducted schoolgirls in northwest Nigeria's Zamfara state, a state spokesman said on Friday. The incident is the second such kidnapping in just over a week and the third since December in Nigeria's north, where a surge in armed militancy has led to a widespread breakdown of security.

Nigeria's growing kidnapping industry, hundreds have been killed