The Federal Government yesterday, Sunday, December 21, 2025, announced the release of 130 kidnapped schoolchildren whisked away by gunmen from the St. Mary’s Primary and Secondary School, Papiri, Niger State.

A presidential spokesman, Sunday Dare, announced this on his official X handle on Sunday.

“Another 130 abducted Niger state pupils released, none left in captivity,” Dare said in the post on X.

The post was accompanied by a photo of smiling children and a woman. It came over 24 hours after News Express, on Saturday afternoon, reported the release of the captives.

Mass Abduction

Over 300 children, teachers, and other staff members were kidnapped by the gunmen who stormed the Catholic school in the early hours of November 21.

Sources said the gunmen, who arrived in large numbers, riding on over 60 motorcycles and accompanied by a van, shot the school’s gatekeeper, leaving him with serious injuries.

The state government, while condemning the attack, said it had earlier issued a clear directive suspending all construction activities and ordering the temporary closure of all boarding schools within the affected zone as a precautionary measure, a claim the school authorities denied.

The Niger attack was the latest in a series of abductions involving schoolchildren, and came less than a week after bandits kidnapped over 20 girls from the Government Girls Comprehensive Senior Secondary School (GGCSS) in Maga, Kebbi State.

Days later, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) disclosed that 50 of the children escaped from captivity.

The exact number of those who were kidnapped from the school is still unclear, as CAN had earlier said 315 people were taken away.

The Federal Government responded by imposing a 24-hour security cordon and launching aerial surveillance across parts of Kwara, Kebbi, and Niger States.

President Bola Tinubu cancelled planned international travel to address the crisis.

Authorities also ordered the indefinite closure of all schools in Niger State and many federal institutions in high-risk regions.

100 Released

On December 7, the Federal Government said it secured the release of 100 of the children.

Governor Umaru Bago of Niger State received the 100 Abducted pupils at the Niger State Government House.

The children arrived at the Niger State Government House at about 5:20 pm and were received by Governor Umar Bago and other government officials on Monday, December 8, 2025.

They were formally handed over to the state government by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).

Global Outrage

The abductions sparked global outrage over the spate of insecurity in the country, kidnappings recorded in different states, including Kwara — where 38 worshippers were kidnapped — and Borno states.

The incidents came amid international pressure from the US, whose President, Donald Trump, threatened to send US forces into Nigeria with “guns-a-blazing” if Africa’s most populous country did not stem what he claimed was the killing of Christians by Islamists, “committing these horrible atrocities”.

His threat came a day after he declared Nigeria a “Country of Particular Concern”. (Adapted from a Channels TV report)

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