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Abducted Niger school pupils now 303 – CAN
A total of 303 schoolchildren and 12 teachers were abducted by gunmen during an attack on St. Mary’s School, a Catholic institution in north-central Nigeria’s Niger state, the Christian Association of Nigeria said Saturday, updating an earlier tally of 215 schoolchildren.
The tally was changed “after a verification exercise and a final census was carried out,” according to a statement issued by the Most. Rev. Bulus Dauwa Yohanna, chairman of the Niger state chapter of CAN, who visited the school on Friday.
He said 88 other students “were also captured after they tried to escape” during the attack. The students were both male and female and ranged in age from 10 to 18.
The school kidnapping in Niger state’s remote Papiri community happened four days after 25 schoolchildren were seized in similar circumstances in neighboring Kebbi state’s Maga town, which is 170 kilometers (106 miles) away.
No group has yet claimed responsibility for the abductions and authorities have said tactical squads have been deployed alongside local hunters to rescue the children.
Yohanna described as false a claim from the state government that the school had reopened for studies despite an earlier directive for schools in that part of Niger state to close temporarily due to security threats.
“We did not receive any circular. It must be an afterthought and a way to shift blame,” he said, calling on families “to remain calm and prayerful.”
School kidnappings have come to define insecurity in Africa’s most populous nation, and armed gangs often see schools as “strategic” targets to draw more attention.
UNICEF said last year that only 37% of schools across 10 of the conflict-hit states have early warning systems to detect threats.
Niger state has now shut down all schools as a measure to forestall other kidnappings. The decision was in a bid to protect lives and property, Niger Gov. Umar Bago told reporters Saturday after meeting with security officials in Minna.
“It is the decision of stakeholders today to close all schools in Niger state. All schools are closed till further notice. So we have declared Christmas holiday for all schools in Niger state,” Bago said.
The kidnappings are happening amid U.S. President Donald Trump’s claims of targeted killings against Christians in the West African country. Attacks in Nigeria affect both Christians and Muslims. The school attack earlier this week in Kebbi state was in a Muslim-majority town.
The attack also took place as Nigerian National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu was visiting the U.S. where he met Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday.
President Bola Tinubu has welcomed the release of the 24 schoolgirls abducted by terrorists in Maga, Kebbi State, last Monday.
Reports said the terrorists struck the school at dawn on November 17 and abducted the girls, moments after a military detachment left the premises.
The Kebbi incident triggered other copycat kidnappings in Eruku, Kwara State, and Papiri, Niger State.
It was reported that all 38 kidnapped victims in Eruku were freed on Sunday.
On the same day, the Niger State chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria said 50 of the missing students of the Catholic school in Niger had been found in their parents’ homes.
Bayo Onanuga, the spokesperson to the President, said that Tinubu has applauded the security agents for their efforts in securing freedom for all the victims taken away by the terrorists.
He further tasked the security agencies to intensify efforts to rescue the remaining students still being held captive.
“I am relieved that all the 24 girls have been accounted for. Now, we must put as a matter of urgency more boots on the ground in the vulnerable areas to avert further incidents of kidnapping,” Tinubu said, according to Bayo Onanuga.
“My government will offer all the assistance needed to achieve this,” President Tinubu said.
The 25 schoolgirls abducted from Government Girls’ Comprehensive Senior Secondary School, Maga, in Kebbi State have regained their freedom.
Reliable government and security sources confirmed the development on Tuesday.
Sources said that the girls were rescued earlier today and are being transported to the Government House in Birnin Kebbi for medical examination and debriefing.
“The girls have been freed. They are on their way to the State House,” a senior official said.
Although the rescue has been confirmed, details of how the schoolgirls were freed had not been made available as at the time of filing this report.
Security sources, however, said the breakthrough followed intensified joint operations involving the military, police, vigilantes, and intelligence teams across forest routes in the area.
The students were abducted on Monday, November 17, when gunmen invaded their boarding school in Maga.
President Bola Tinubu has ordered a comprehensive security cordon on forests in Kwara State following recent incidents of kidnappings and terrorist activities.
The directive was disclosed on Tuesday in a statement posted on X by the Special Adviser on Media and Public Communication to the President, Sunday Dare.
According to Dare, the President instructed the Nigerian Air Force to expand air surveillance across the innermost parts of the forests in Kwara, where terrorists are believed to be hiding.
He said, “President Tinubu has ordered total security cordon over the forests in Kwara State following recent kidnappings and terrorist activities.
“President Tinubu directed the Air Force to expand its air surveillance across the innermost parts of the forests in Kwara State where it is believed the terrorists are hiding. They are to maintain a 24-hour surveillance and link up with the boots on the ground.”
Dare added that the “order equally applies to the Kebbi and Niger States axis where many are expected to be rescued. Communities are also urged to provide timely information about strange movements and activities to aid the work of the security forces.”
The directives come in the wake of the recent abduction and rescue of 38 churchgoers in Eruku, and the reported kidnapping of at least 10 residents on Monday evening in Isapa, a neighbouring community in Ekiti Local Government Area of Kwara State.
It was gathered that the latest attack occurred around 6 p.m. when between 20 and 30 bandits stormed the quiet agrarian settlement with a large herd of cattle, shooting indiscriminately as residents fled for safety.
Our correspondent gathered that the attackers moved through several parts of the town, firing shots into homes and whisking away residents, including a pregnant woman, two nursing mothers and children.
The Isapa attack is the third major assault on Ekiti LGA communities in less than a month.
Three weeks ago, 18 residents were kidnapped in Eruku but later rescued.
Last week, 38 worshippers were abducted inside a church in Eruku during a thanksgiving service and were also later released.
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