LAGOS: A Christian group on Saturday said 315 students and teachers were seized a day earlier in Nigeria’s second mass school abduction in a week, as security fears mounted in Africa’s most populous nation.
The early Friday raid on St. Mary’s school in Niger state in central Nigeria came after gunmen on Monday stormed a secondary school in neighboring Kebbi state, abducting 25 girls.
The Christian Association of Nigeria said the new number came “after a verification exercise” following the early Friday mass kidnapping, and added that “The total number of victims abducted ... is now 303 students and 12 teachers.”
The number of students kidnapped is almost half of the school’s 629 enrolled pupils.
Authorities in the nearby states of Katsina and Plateau have ordered all schools to close as a precautionary measure.
The Niger state government closed many schools and President Bola Tinubu canceled international engagements, including attending the G20 summit in Johannesburg, to handle the crisis.
The two abduction operations and an attack on a church in the west of the country, in which two people were killed, have happened since US President Donald Trump threatened military action over what he called the killing of Christians by radical Islamists in Nigeria.
Nigeria is still scarred by the kidnapping of nearly 300 girls by Boko Haram jihadists at Chibok in northestern Borno state more than a decade ago. Some of those girls are still missing.
Christian group says 315 seized in latest Nigerian school kidnapping
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Christian group says 315 seized in latest Nigerian school kidnapping
- The number of students kidnapped is almost half of the school’s 629 enrolled pupils
Air France-KLM hikes long-haul ticket prices
- “Air France and KLM are increasing their fares on long-haul flights for tickets issued from Mar. 11, 2026,” the group said
- The group said economy class return fares would typically increase by $58
PARIS: Air France-KLM said Thursday it is raising long-haul ticket prices due to soaring jet fuel prices caused by the the Iran war.
“The current geopolitical situation in the Middle East has led to a sudden and significant increase in fuel prices, particularly kerosene. As a result, Air France and KLM are increasing their fares on long-haul flights for tickets issued from Wednesday, March 11, 2026,” the group said in a statement, confirming a report in financial daily Les Echos.
The group said economy class return fares would typically increase by 50 euros ($58) as it followed carriers such as SAS, Cathay Pacific, Air India and Qantas in hiking fares.
Low-cost carrier Transavia, owned by the group, has elected not to increase its fares as yet, but is “monitoring the situation closely and will take action if necessary,” a spokesperson told AFP.
The average global price of aviation fuel reached nearly $168 per barrel on Wednesday, according to the Platts benchmark index, slightly down on Monday but double January 2 levels.
The increase has been sharper than for crude oil prices owing to extra refining and associated costs.
The price of a barrel of Brent crude briefly topped $100 on Thursday, despite an unprecedented release by International Energy Agency members of stocks to avoid a global shortage.
Fuel is a major expense for airlines, either first or second depending on the carrier.
Some airlines will look to limit the effects of the price rise through a ‘hedging’ strategy comprising buying fuel at a fixed price several months in advance.
Air France-KLM said in February it had strengthened its own hedging policy by securing 70 percent of its supplies for the current and next quarters, then 60 percent for the following quarter.
Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific said earlier it was doubling its fuel surcharge for most routes from March 18, with flights between Hong Kong and Europe bringing a fuel surcharge rising from around 62 euro to around 129 euros.
Another local airline, Hong Kong Airlines, announced on Thursday that it had also increased its fuel surcharge for most of its flights.
