In the images, which have been widely shared on Facebook, some students appeared 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 back and forth.
The students were abducted Thursday night after gunmen attacked the Mando Federal College of Forest Mechanization, Kaduna, according to Kaduna police.
The students, who were forcibly taken from their hostels (some of them in their nightgowns), could be seen in the video asking the government to be diplomatic in its commitment to the gunmen.
The student asking for cooperation, whose last name is Emmanuel, also claims that a strong rescue operation will have serious consequences for the criminal gang. He added that “many of us here have been injured, seriously injured … time passes … most of us here have health problems.”
It was not immediately clear whether the heavily armed kidnappers, who were dressed in military fatigue, have made any rescue requests.
Kaduna police spokesman Muhammed Jalige told CNN on Sunday that the force was unaware of the assailants’ monetary demands.
“We are not aware of it. Even if they make any request, it will be through the school management,” Jalige said, confirming the authenticity of the video.
“The video is very authentic. The bandits used one of the abducted victims to record the video,” he said.
Jalige said paying the ransom was not an option.
“No one is willing to consider it. We are trying to fight the bandits and get the students out,” he said.
The Federal College of Forestry and Mechanization is a higher education institution located in Afaka, a forestry community close to the military barracks of the Nigerian Defense Academy. University students, who are between 19 and 25 years old, specialize in agricultural studies.
In a statement Friday, Samuel Aruwan, commissioner of the Kaduna State Ministry of Internal Security and Home Affairs, said 180 students had been rescued by soldiers who “hired armed bandits.”
“The troops successfully rescued 180 citizens; 42 students, eight staff members and 130 male students … some 30 students, a mix of men and women, have yet to be considered,” the statement said.
Jalige told CNN on Sunday morning that 39 students are still being held by the bandits and a rescue team was working to ensure the release of the students without any casualties.
“We have carried out a joint operation with other sister security agencies with the aim of rescuing the victims of the abduction unharmed,” the police spokesman said.
Daniel Atep, a leading student who runs an association of agriculture students at the college, told CNN that he recognized almost everyone in the viral video and identified one of the captives.
“I know pretty much everyone in this video,” said Atep, who also corroborated the police claim that the kidnappers used one of the victims to film the request for help.
Atep added that the school management has not established any security measures to ensure the safety of the students in the hostels, where most of the students live, before the attack.
Another student, Zainab Umar, told CNN that his roommate was also seen in the video
An aide to President Muhammadu Buhari issued a statement on Saturday applauding the “early response of the army that led to the rescue of 180 students, including eight staff members,” and demanded the safe release of the other students.
Buhari said his government will not allow “destruction of the school system” by “school-directed bandits.”
Kidnappings continue to spread in northern Nigeria
More than 300 schoolgirls were abducted from a school in Zamfara state, also in northwestern Nigeria, earlier this month.
At least 42 people were abducted from a public school last month in Kagara, Niger State and later released, and more than 300 schoolchildren were arrested and released later in December.
Rescue hijacking is common in some parts of Nigeria and has become a major security challenge. State governors regularly pay ransoms to ensure the safety of victims, but rarely admit to doing so.
Recently, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari told state governors to review “their policy of rewarding bandits with money and vehicles”, saying the policy “could backfire with potentially disastrous consequences”. Buhari also urged governors to work hard to secure their schools.