Nigeria’s National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, has assured school authorities and parents that the children kidnapped from St. Mary’s Co-Education Catholic School in Kontagora, Niger State, will be safely returned soon.
More than 300 students and staff were abducted by armed groups on November 21, adding to a worrying rise in mass kidnappings across the country.
During a visit to the school on Monday, Ribadu told officials that the children were safe and efforts to secure their release were progressing.
“The children are fine and will be back soon,” he said, according to Daniel Atori, spokesman for the Catholic archdiocese that oversees the school. He added that the children “are where they are and will come back safely,” but did not disclose details on their exact location or current rescue strategy.
Nigeria has struggled with mass abductions for over a decade, beginning with the 2014 kidnapping of Chibok schoolgirls by Boko Haram. Today, many attacks are carried out by heavily armed bandits who abduct civilians for ransom, turning kidnapping into a profitable criminal industry.
The recent wave of abductions has drawn renewed attention, with hundreds kidnapped in November alone. The St. Mary’s incident occurred the same week gunmen took 25 students from a school in neighbouring Kebbi State. Those students have since been released through what the governor described as “non-kinetic” methods.
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So far, around 50 of the St. Mary’s students have reportedly escaped from captivity.
Ribadu’s delegation included top government officials such as the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and the Director General of the Department of State Services, underscoring the federal government’s focus on resolving the crisis.
Families and communities continue to wait anxiously, hoping the remaining children will soon be reunited with their loved ones.
