Train Attack: Three weeks after, many passengers still in captivity, what attackers want

About 21 days after the attack on a Kaduna-bound train by terrorists, dozens of passengers abducted by the gunmen have not been freed.

The exact number of passengers kidnapped has not been ascertained. However, over a hundred people on the train’s passenger manifest have not been accounted for and are believed to have been kidnapped by the gunmen. One of the victims, a senior government official, who was released by the gunmen is quoted to have said at least 68 passengers were kidnapped.

The gunmen have since released two videos  showing some of the passengers.

On Monday, family members of some of the abducted passengers gathered in Abuja and asked the government to save their relatives from the bandits.

Speaking on behalf of other family members, Abdulfatai Jimoh said they were yet to determine the status of the abducted passengers, who have been missing since March 28 – the day of the attack.

“The kidnappers said we should be ready that they are going to contact us. We have not had any communication with them since then,” he said.

“Since this incident happened, we expected that by now, the government, the Nigerian Railway Corporation and the federal ministry of transportation are supposed to have identified relatives of the victims to tell us what efforts they are making or not to rescue our loved ones unhurt.”

On Wednesday, the Nigerian government said it is doing all it can to free the victims. Information minister Lai Mohammed, however, refused to disclose the specific steps the government was taking to free the victims.

“What the federal government is doing won’t be the subject matter of a press conference, because we have lives at stake,” Mr Mohammed said, adding, “What I can assure you is that as we speak, the respective arms of the government are actually engaged in getting those victims released.”

According to the manifest released by the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), there were 362 passengers on board the train.

The NRC said a fortnight ago that a total of 186 passengers on the train have been confirmed to be safe.

Of the remaining 176 passengers, nine have been confirmed dead, while the families of 22 passengers have formally declared them missing. This indicates that a total of 167 passengers were yet to be accounted for including the 22 declared missing by their families.

It is not yet clear if all the 167 were kidnapped by the attackers or have just not been accounted for.

However, one of those kidnapped was the Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture (BOA), Alwan Hassan, who was later freed by the bandits, reportedly after the payment of ransom.

What do the terrorists want?

In the two video clips released by the bandits, they asked the government to meet their demands or they would kill the captives.ⓘ

In the second video clip, the passengers called on the government to reach out to the gunmen, meet their demands, and rescue the passengers.

The terrorists, popularly referred to as bandits, did not, however, state their demands.

PREMIUM TIMES asked security experts and those with knowledge of banditry what the demands are.

A social historian and lecturer at Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto, Murtala Ahmed-Rufai, said the demands are known to the federal government, the Kaduna State Government and security agencies.

He said that based on his investigations, the attack was orchestrated by the duo of Dogo Gide and Ali Kawajo, two notorious bandit leaders believed to have ties with two terror groups: Ansaru and Boko Haram.

“Dogo Gide is known for making demands whenever he abducts people with relations to government. These requests are always the same. He and Kawajo have some commanders that were captured at different times and places by security agents. Even when he abducted the FGC Yauri students, he didn’t demand money but prisoner swap,” he said.

Mr Ahmed-Rufai, who wrote the book, ‘I’m a Bandit’, said elements of Ansaru and Boko Haram were among those who undertook the attack.

“Remember that both Dogo Gide and Ali Kawaje live in the same axis with Malam Abba (a notorious Ansaru Commander). So, the demands could be many, especially now that there are other interests. But overall, it’s all about prisoner swap,” he added.Advertisements

Another expert in banditry in the North-west, Yusuf Anka, corroborated Mr Ahmed-Rufai.

“If they needed money in the first place, they would have continued discussing with the family members of the abducted passengers. From what I learnt, some of their key men were being held by the government so it’s possible that they’re demanding a prisoner swap,” the journalist said.

Although the federal government did not state what the specific demands of the bandits are, or what specific efforts are being done to free the victims, it confirmed that the gunmen were now partnering with Boko Haram terrorists.ⓘ

“What is happening now is that there is a kind of an unholy handshake between bandits and Boko Haram insurgents,” Mr Mohammed said at the Wednesday press briefing after the weekly Federal Executive Council meeting.

“Preliminary reports of what transpired at the Kaduna train attacks show that there is a kind of collaboration between the bandits and the dislodged Boko Haram terrorists from the North-east.”

While the government remains coy about its actions, for the family of the victims, their priority is to secure the release of their relatives.

“In fact, the primary duty of any government is to protect the lives and property of citizens. We believe our government can do it and it’s capable of doing it,” Mr Jimoh said.

Credit: Premium Times