The Federal Government has reportedly secured the release of 100 schoolchildren who were abducted from St. Mary’s Private Catholic Primary and Secondary School in Papiri, Agwara Local Government Area, Niger State.
The attack occurred on 21 November 2025, when armed bandits on motorbikes stormed the school dormitories around 2:00 a.m., holding the campus for nearly three hours. During the raid, 315 people—including 303 students and 12 teachers—were kidnapped.
In the immediate aftermath, 50 pupils managed to escape and were safely reunited with their families. The remaining 265 individuals, comprising 253 students and all 12 teachers, remained in the captors’ custody.
Security forces, supported by local hunters, were deployed to search nearby forests for the abductees. The Federal Government also imposed a 24-hour security cordon and initiated aerial surveillance across parts of Kwara, Kebbi, and Niger States.
President Bola Tinubu canceled scheduled international travel to personally oversee the response, while authorities ordered the indefinite closure of all schools in Niger State and several federal institutions in areas deemed high risk.