By: Goodluck E. Adubazi, Abuja.

Nigeria’s federal government has secured the release of 100 schoolchildren abducted last month from St. Mary’s Private Catholic Primary and Secondary School in Papiri, a remote community in Agwara Local Government Area of Niger State.

Authorities confirmed the development Sunday after days of mounting pressure over one of the country’s largest mass school kidnappings in recent years.

The attack unfolded in the early hours of November 21, when armed men on motorbikes stormed the school around 2 a.m. Witnesses said the gunmen moved from dormitory to dormitory for nearly three hours before marching their captives into the surrounding forests.

In total, 315 people — including 303 students and 12 teachers — were abducted. While 50 pupils managed to escape within the first 24 hours, at least 265 victims, among them 253 children and all 12 teachers, remained in captivity, triggering a nationwide outcry and a sweeping security response.

Following the abductions, the federal government imposed a 24-hour security lockdown across vulnerable border communities. Ground forces and aerial surveillance units were deployed across large sections of Niger, Kebbi, and Kwara States in an intensified search-and-rescue mission.

President Bola Tinubu cancelled international engagements to personally oversee the operations, while authorities ordered the immediate closure of all schools in Niger State and several federal institutions across high-risk areas.

Officials say rescue efforts are ongoing as security agencies continue working to secure the remaining abducted children and teachers.