US Senate Condemns Nigeria’s Failure to Protect Schoolchildren, Vows Accountability

The United States Senate Foreign Relations Committee has strongly criticised the Nigerian government over what it described as a long standing failure to protect schoolchildren from terrorist attacks and mass abductions.

The Committee’s Chairman, Senator Jim Risch, issued the statement in a post on the Committee’s official X account, expressing concern that Nigerian authorities have not done enough to safeguard vulnerable students, particularly girls, from jihadist and criminal groups operating across the country.

Risch stated that despite years of repeated attacks on educational institutions, little progress has been made in securing schools or preventing abductions.

“Nigeria has long failed to protect its schoolchildren from jihadist and criminal abductions, and little has changed. Students, especially girls, remain targets for enslavement, conversion, and ransom,” the statement read.

The US lawmaker added that as Washington continues its diplomatic engagement with Abuja, the US government will hold them accountable for the ongoing persecution and vulnerability of citizens targeted by extremist groups.

The remarks come barely 48 hours after about 25 schoolgirls were abducted by gunmen from the Government Girls Comprehensive Senior Secondary School in Maga, Danko Wasagu Local Government Area of Kebbi State. During the attack, the terrorists reportedly killed the principal before fleeing with the students to an unknown location.

The latest incident has reignited widespread concern over Nigeria’s persistent insecurity and the recurring pattern of school kidnappings that have traumatised communities and disrupted education across the northern region.

Authorities in Kebbi State, together with federal security agencies, have launched operations to track down the attackers and rescue the abducted students, although details remain limited.

The US statement adds further international pressure on the Nigerian government to take decisive action, amid growing outrage over the country’s worsening security challenges.