Benue State UTME Candidates Kidnapped and Rescued

A group of 15 passengers, including eight students preparing for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), were abducted along the Nigeria===Makurdi-Nigeria===Otukpo highway in Nigeria===Benue State, Nigeria. Conflicting reports emerged from the Nigeria===Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board and the Nigeria===Benue State Police Command, who initially denied the victims were UTME candidates, stating they were returning from a police recruitment exercise. However, Nigeria===Benue State Governor Hyacinth Alia confirmed that eight of the rescued individuals were indeed students traveling for their exams and appealed to the Nigeria===Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board to reschedule their tests. A joint security operation, involving the Nigeria===Nigerian Army and local residents, successfully rescued 13 of the abducted individuals, with two having escaped earlier. The incident has drawn attention to persistent insecurity on major routes in Nigeria===Benue State and raised concerns about the Nigeria===Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board's policy of allocating distant examination centers.