Nigerian authorities confirmed the release of the last 130 students who remained kidnapped following the armed attack on the St. Mary’s Catholic boarding school, located in Niger State, in the center of the country. With this operation, the Government concluded one of the most numerous school kidnappings recorded in Nigeria in recent years.
“The rest of the 130 kidnapped students have been released. No one remains in captivity,” announced presidential spokesperson Sunday Dare in a message posted on the social network X. Subsequently, the Presidency specified that the students would be transferred to Minna, the capital of Niger State, to reunite with their families.
Confusing Figures and Partial Releases
The kidnapping occurred at the end of November, when armed men burst into the St. Mary’s secondary school at dawn, a Catholic boarding school located in the rural village of Papiri. During the attack, the assailants took numerous students and staff members, in an episode that evoked the international impact of the kidnapping of nearly 300 girls in Chibok in 2014.
From the beginning of the case, the figures on the exact number of kidnapped people were confusing. The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) initially reported 315 missing students and workers. Subsequently, it was learned that around 50 people managed to escape during or shortly after the attack. On December 7, the Government announced the release of nearly 100 students, leaving a group still in the hands of the captors.
Security Operation and Final Verification
As explained by presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga, the final release was the result of an “operation driven by military intelligence,” without details being offered about its development. Onanuga indicated that the students could reunite with their families before the Christmas celebrations.
United Nations sources cited by international media indicated that all kidnapped people would have regained their freedom, although they warned of the need for a final verification, due to the fact that some students fled during the attack and returned on their own to remote communities. In this regard, the governor of Niger State, Mohammed Umaru Bago, contacted the bishop of the Kontagora diocese to confirm the release of students and teachers.
Persistent Insecurity in Nigeria
To date, the authorities have not publicly reported who was responsible for the kidnapping or whether any ransom was paid. Security analysts point out that mass kidnappings have become a key source of funding for armed gangs operating in different regions of the country, in a context of serious insecurity that has affected Nigeria for years.