By Ajibola Olaide, JKNewsMedia Reporter
THE FEDERAL Government announced it has secured the release of 100 schoolchildren abducted from St. Mary’s Private Catholic Primary and Secondary School in Papiri, Agwara Local Government Area, Niger State.
The pupils were among 315 individuals, including 12 teachers, abducted during an attack on the school by bandits on 21 November 2025.
Media reports on the incident had recorded that the gunmen arrived at the school vicinity around 2:00am on motorbikes and stormed their dormitories over a three-hour period.
Security forces and community hunters were deployed to search nearby forests for the abductees.
However, fifty pupils reportedly escaped on the first day and were reunited with their families.
Sadly, about 265 individuals, including 253 children and all 12 teachers, remained in captivity following the attack.
The Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Abubakar Usman, issued a statement condemning the attack.
The statement noted that the state government had previously received credible intelligence indicating elevated security threats across parts of the Niger North Senatorial District.
As a proactive safety measure, it directed the suspension of all construction activities and the temporary closure of boarding schools within the affected areas.
The government statement also alleged that the school had reopened and resumed academic activities without notifying or obtaining clearance from authorities, a claim denied by the school management.
The incident drew reactions from prominent figures, including the Catholic pontiff, Pope Leo XIV.
Following the abduction, the FG then imposed a 24.00-hour security cordon and launched aerial surveillance across parts of Kwara, Kebbi, and Niger States.
President Bola Tinubu also cancelled planned international travels to address the crisis as he also ordered the indefinite closure of all schools in Niger State and many federal institutions in high-risk regions.
Last Monday, the National Security Adviser (NSA) to the President, Nuhu Ribadu, visited the Catholic Bishop of Kontagora Diocese and Proprietor of the school, Reverend Bulus Dauwa Yohanna, and parents of the abducted children at St. Michael’s Catholic Cathedral, Kontagora.
During the visit, Ribadu reassured parents and authorities that the abducted pupils “are doing fine and will return soon.”
He conveyed President Tinubu’s message, stating that efforts to rescue the children were progressing and that security deployment in the affected area had been intensified.
“God is with them, and God is with us. Evil will never win. They are going to come back. I give you that assurance,” Ribadu said.
A handout photograph taken by Reverend Bulus Dauwa Yohanna on 21 November 2025 and distributed the following day showed empty bunk beds and scattered belongings inside a student dormitory at the school.
The FG’s security response is also noted to have followed the reported abduction of 315 people, the initial escape of 50 pupils, and ongoing efforts to recover the remaining 265 individuals adding that the operations included coordination between federal forces and local security personnel in the affected region.
The government’s measures, including the suspension of school activities and construction, the security cordon, aerial surveillance, and indefinite closure of institutions in high-risk areas, were also described as proactive steps to safeguard students and staff across Niger State.
