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.

…Declares it criminal offence

The Federal Government of Nigeria has officially abolished open grazing of cattle across the country with immediate effect.

The announcement was made in Yola, Adamawa State, by the Minister of Livestock Development, Mallam Idi Mukhtar Maiha, during the inaugural National Council on Livestock Development.

Speaking at the event, the Minister declared that open grazing is now a punishable offence, stating that it has caused unnecessary crises and needless loss of lives over the years.

“It is now an offence to be caught grazing cattle openly. All herders are strongly encouraged to embrace ranching, which is safer, more modern, and will produce healthier and fatter cattle for better business,” Maiha said.

He revealed that since the Presidential initiative to revitalise the livestock sector began, the ministry is determined to position it as Nigeria’s next biggest revenue earner after oil and gas. The sector is projected to generate $74 billion in the next five years, with over $14 billion already earned.

The Minister was warmly received by Adamawa State Governor, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, who was represented by his deputy, Professor Kaletapwa Farauta George. The Governor described Adamawa as the home of livestock in Nigeria and commended the Minister for choosing the state to host the historic council meeting.

Chairman of the Senate Committee on Livestock, Senator Musa Mustapha, stated that livestock will soon overtake oil as the nation’s top revenue source, assuring that the Senate is ready to support a robust, business-oriented budget for the ministry.

Similarly, Chairman of the House Committee on Livestock, Hon. Tasir Olawale Raji, praised the ministry’s bold step in banning open grazing, describing the farmer-herder clashes as unnecessary conflicts that should have been resolved long ago.

The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Dr. (Mrs.) Chinyere Ijeoma Akujobi, thanked investors who have embraced ranching, particularly mentioning Dan Lawan Adamawa and Alhaji Sadik Daware.

The Minister also commended the Adamawa Livestock Productivity and Resilience Support Project (L-PRES) for achieving significant milestones in the past 12 years.

The ban on open grazing is seen as a major policy shift aimed at ending decades of farmer-herder conflicts and modernising Nigeria’s livestock industry.