Amnesty International Nigeria on Thursday held a stakeholders forum and press conference on enforced disappearance and missing persons in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.
The human rights organisation noted that such disappearance is due to the insurgency that devastated the northeast region, according to a statement issued by its Country Director, Isa Sanusi, on Thursday.
It said, "A network of victims' families has registered over 23,000 missing persons, some disappeared since 2009, while for some, it was as recent as a year ago.
"Amnesty International is gravely concerned by the Nigerian authorities’ deafening silence on the fate of victims of enforced disappearances in the region.
"The event is a build-up to the commemoration of the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances to be held on 30 August 2023.
"Victims' families and civil society organizations gave testimonies on the scale of cases of enforced disappearance in the northeast and called for accountability and justice."
"The Nigerian authorities must ensure that enforced disappearances are thoroughly and effectively investigated and suspects are prosecuted in accordance with international standards," it added.