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Around 100 schoolchildren kidnapped from a Catholic schoolhouse successful Nigeria past period were handed over to authorities officials connected Monday (December 8, 2025), AFP reporters saw.
The children — galore wearing shot jerseys and girls successful agelong robes — were driven to the Niger State Government House successful achromatic buses escorted by a twelve subject vans and armoured vehicles.
In precocious November 315 students and unit were kidnapped from St. Mary's co-educational boarding schoolhouse successful north-central Niger state, arsenic the state buckled nether a question of wide abductions reminiscent of the infamous 2014 Boko Haram kidnapping of schoolgirls successful Chibok.
Some 50 escaped instantly afterward, but the destiny of the 165 others from St. Mary's thought to inactive beryllium successful captivity is inactive unclear.
Niger authorities Governor Umar Bago said during an code to students and officials "they volition beryllium safely delivered to them and precise soon".
The children handed implicit Monday volition acquisition aesculapian checks earlier they are reunited with their parents, the politician added.
Theresa Pamma, a UNICEF official, said "we each cognize that, for being implicit 2 weeks successful captivity, those children surely request immoderate help," including intelligence wellness care.
Bago shook hands with immoderate of the children and led them into a hallway wherever the an emir and section officials were seated to person them.
It was unclear however the students' merchandise was secured.
Kidnappers chartless
According to a database of the released children seen by AFP, astir of those freed are aged betwixt 10 and 17 years. The schoolhouse catered for children arsenic young arsenic nursery schoolhouse age.
It is unclear who seized the children from their boarding schoolhouse successful the distant agrarian colony of Papiri.
Though kidnappings for ransom are communal arsenic a mode for criminals and equipped groups to marque speedy cash, a spate of wide abductions successful November enactment an uncomfortable spotlight connected Nigeria's already grim information situation.
The state faces a long-running jihadist insurgency successful the northeast, portion equipped "bandit" gangs onslaught and loot villages successful the northwest.
In November, assailants crossed the state kidnapped 2 twelve Muslim schoolgirls, 38 religion worshippers and a bride and her bridesmaids, with farmers, women and children besides taken hostage.
The kidnappings came arsenic Nigeria faces a diplomatic violative from the United States, wherever President Donald Trump has alleged that wide killings of Christians person amounted to a "genocide".
The Nigerian authorities and autarkic analysts cull that framing, which has agelong been utilized by the Christian close successful the United States and Europe.
The religiously divers state of 230 cardinal radical is the country of myriad conflicts that person killed some Christians and Muslims.
Though determination was nary breakdown of the kidnapped pupil's religions, St. Mary's "accommodates Christians and Muslims" arsenic students, Daniel Atori, a spokesperson for the Christian Association of Nigeria successful Niger state, told AFP Saturday.
US Representative Riley Moore, who has seized connected accusations of the mistreatment of Christians, said connected societal media Monday helium met with Nigerian information officials arsenic portion of a legislature delegation sojourn to the country.
The rescue of the 100 children is "a affirmative objection of the government's expanding effect to the information situation", helium said.
