Families of Missing Persons in Yobe Urge Government Action

Families of 1,500 missing persons in Yobe State have called on the government, security agencies, and humanitarian organizations to enhance efforts to locate their loved ones. This appeal was made on Thursday in Damaturu during the observance of the 2026 International Day of the Disappeared Persons.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) reported that over 1,500 individuals are registered as missing in Yobe, part of more than 17,000 cases tracked across Nigeria. Sayd Rashid Hassan, Head of the ICRC Sub-Delegation in Yobe State, indicated that this number may only represent a fraction of the actual missing persons, with over 50% being children at the time of their disappearance.

Malam Ali Idriss, Chairman of the Families of the Missing Persons, emphasized the emotional distress and economic challenges faced by families due to these disappearances and called for coordinated support and stronger measures to prevent such incidents.