A senior United States Senator, Jim Risch (R-Idaho), has criticized the Bola Tinubu-led Nigerian government for its persistent failure to address escalating insecurity, particularly the repeated kidnappings of schoolchildren.

Reacting to the recent abduction of 25 students from the Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School (GGCSS) in Maga, Kebbi State, Senator Risch warned that the U.S. would hold Nigeria accountable for failing to protect its most vulnerable citizens.

“Nigeria has long failed to protect its schoolchildren from jihadist and criminal abductions, and little has changed,” the Republican lawmaker, who chairs the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said in a statement on X (formerly Twitter).
“Students, especially girls, remain targets for enslavement, conversion, and ransom. As the U.S. engages the Nigerian government on the persecution of its most vulnerable citizens, we will continue to hold them accountable.”

The remarks come amid national and international outrage over Monday’s attack, in which terrorists also killed the vice-principal of the school. The incident reflects a long-running pattern of school kidnappings in northern Nigeria, including high-profile cases such as the 2014 Chibok abductions and attacks in Dapchi, Jangebe, Tegina, Kankara, and Kuriga.

Human rights organizations have consistently warned that these kidnappings undermine education, especially for girls, and hinder regional development. In Kebbi State, a similar attack occurred in 2021 when gunmen abducted over 80 students from Federal Government College, Birnin Yauri, with some victims held for months.

While one of the recently abducted schoolgirls has managed to escape, security analysts say the attack in Maga highlights armed groups’ continued exploitation of weak rural security for financial and ideological gains.

Senator Risch has previously pressured Nigeria to improve religious freedom protections and strengthen responses to insurgency, banditry, and mass kidnappings. His latest criticism underscores renewed international concern over Nigeria’s inability to protect minors, despite repeated promises of security reforms.

Following the Kebbi abductions, the Nigerian military launched intensified search operations, and state authorities pledged to ensure the safe return of the remaining students. Families and advocacy groups, however, continue to call for proactive measures and structural reforms to prevent future attacks rather than relying solely on reactive interventions.