The Federal Government has secured the release of 130 schoolchildren abducted from St. Mary’s Primary and Secondary School, Papiri, in Agwarra Local Government Area of Niger State.

A presidential spokesman, Sunday Dare, confirmed the development on Sunday, stating that none of the pupils remains in captivity. He announced the release in a post on his official X handle, which was accompanied by a photograph showing some of the freed children.

The release follows the mass abduction carried out in the early hours of November 21, when heavily armed gunmen stormed the Catholic school. The attackers reportedly arrived in large numbers on more than 60 motorcycles, supported by a van, and shot the school’s gatekeeper, leaving him seriously injured, before carting away pupils, teachers and other staff members.

While the exact number of those abducted has remained disputed, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) earlier said about 315 people were taken. The Federal Government initially confirmed the release of 100 pupils on December 7, who were formally handed over to the Niger State Government by the Office of the National Security Adviser. Governor Umaru Bago received the freed children at the Government House in Minna on December 8.

The Niger attack was one of several high-profile school abductions recorded across the country in recent weeks. Less than a week earlier, bandits had kidnapped more than 20 girls from the Government Girls Comprehensive Senior Secondary School in Maga, Kebbi State, with CAN later disclosing that 50 captives escaped from that incident.

In response to the Papiri abduction, the Federal Government imposed a 24-hour security cordon and launched aerial surveillance across parts of Niger, Kwara and Kebbi states. President Bola Tinubu also cancelled a planned foreign trip to personally oversee efforts to address the crisis, while authorities ordered the indefinite closure of schools in Niger State and other high-risk areas.

The wave of abductions has triggered widespread local and international condemnation, with growing pressure on the Nigerian government to rein in insecurity, particularly the targeting of schools and places of worship.