Nigeria’s defence minister resigns amid kidnapping crisis

Nigeria’s Minister of Defence, Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, has resigned from his position with immediate effect for health reasons, the president’s office has said.

The 63-year-old’s departure coincides with a period of heightened security challenges across Nigeria, with the government under pressure to deal with a spate of mass kidnappings.

Last week, the office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights reported that at least 402 people, mostly schoolchildren, had been kidnapped since mid-November.

In the latest sign of the insecurity, gunmen abducted at least 20 people, including a Christian pastor, a Muslim bride and her bridesmaids, in two separate raids in the north on Sunday.

Some 250 schoolchildren and 12 teachers from a Catholic school in central Niger state are still believed to be missing following the biggest mass kidnapping attack in recent weeks.

It is not clear who is behind the kidnappings – most analysts believe they are carried out by criminal gangs seeking ransom payments, however a presidential spokesman has told the BBC they believe they are the work of jihadist groups.

SOURCE: BBC NEWS