Freed students of St. Mary's Catholic School in the Papiri community pose for photographs upon their arrival at the government house, in Minna, Nigeria, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)
Nigerians on Monday (Dec. 22) got their first look at 130 children and teachers released after kidnappers seized them last month. The incident marked one of the largest mass abductions in the history of Nigeria. Authorities said plans were underway to reunite the children with their families before Christmas.
According to the Associated Press, some of the children appeared to be malnourished or in shock as they arrived at a government ceremony. Police stated that the children were released on Sunday. By then, a month had passed since gunmen stormed their Catholic school in Niger state’s Papiri community on Nov. 21. It was a predawn attack.
Authorities had earlier reported that 303 schoolchildren and 12 teachers were taken hostage. Fifty of them escaped in the hours that followed, and 100 were freed earlier this month. However, on Monday, Niger State Governor Mohammed Bago indicated that 230 had been taken and all had now been released.
Officials did not say whether a ransom common in such abductions had been paid for the newly released 130. No group has claimed responsibility. However, residents blamed armed gangs that target schools and travelers in kidnappings for ransom across Nigeria’s conflict-battered north.
Most of those seized in mass attack were aged between 10 and 17, the school said. One of the children released earlier told AP that gunmen threatened to shoot them during the attack.
Meanwhile, Maj. Gen. Adamu Garba Laka said at Monday’s event that Nigeria will work with community leaders to boost safety in high-risk areas. Laka is the national coordinator at Nigeria’s Center for Counter Terrorism.
School kidnappings have come to define insecurity in Africa’s most populous country. Days before the mass abduction, gunmen also targeted girls at a boarding school. They stormed the school on Nov. 17, snatching 25 schoolgirls at about 4 a.m. that day. One person died, and another was injured in the aftermath. Most recent report claims one girl escaped the same day, while the remaining 24 were recused by Nigerian forces, per PBS News.
Associated Press contributed to this report via AP Newsroom.
