ABUJA – THE Federal Government on Sunday, said it has secured the release of 130 kidnapped schoolchildren from St. Mary’s Primary and Secondary School, Papiri, Niger State.

This was disclosed by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Public Communication, Mr. Sunday Dare via his Official X handle account @SundayDareSD.

Dare, in the post wrote: “Another 130 abducted Niger state pupils released, none left in captivity.”

The post was accompanied by a photo of smiling children and a woman.

Recall that over 300 children, teachers, and other staff members were kidnapped by the gunmen who stormed the Catholic school in the early hours of November 21.

According to sources, the abductors arrived in large numbers, riding on over 60 motorcycles and accompanied by a van, shot the school’s gatekeeper, leaving him with serious injuries.

Few days later, the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, reported that 50 of the children escaped from captivity. The exact number of those who were kidnapped from the school is still unclear, as CAN had earlier said 315 people were taken away.

As a result of the kidnap incidences of school children in Niger and Kebbi States President Bola Tinubu cancelled his planned international travel to address the crisis. On December 7, the Federal Government said it secured the release of 100 of the children.

The Niger State Governor ,Umaru Bago received the 100 abducted pupils at the Niger State Government House.

The children arrived at the Niger State government house at about 5:20 pm and were received by Governor Bago and other government officials on Monday, December 8, 2025.

The abductions sparked global outrage over the spate of insecurity in the country, kidnappings recorded in different states, including Kwara, where 38 worshippers were kidnapped and Borno states.

The Niger state government, while condemning the attack, said it had earlier issued a clear directive suspending all construction activities and ordering the temporary closure of all boarding schools within the affected zone as a precautionary measure, a claim the school authorities denied.

Before the Niger state abduction, about 25 girls from the Government Girls Comprehensive Senior Secondary School GGCS, in Maga, Kebbi State, were kidnapped by bandits.

The incidents came on the heels of the international pressure from the US, as President, Donald Trump, threatened to send US forces into Nigeria with “guns-a-blazing” if the country did not stem what he claimed was the killing of Christians by Islamists, “committing these horrible atrocities”.

Before then, Donald Trump had declared Nigeria a “Country of Particular Concern”.