All remaining schoolchildren kidnapped from St Mary’s Catholic Private Primary and Secondary School in the Papiri community of Agwara Local Government Area, Niger State, have now been released.
The final group of 115 pupils were freed on Sunday, bringing the total number of rescued children to about 265 and drawing an end to a traumatic month-long captivity.
The abduction took place in the early hours of 21 November 2025, when armed men stormed the boarding school, seizing 303 students and 12 teachers in one of the largest mass kidnappings in recent Nigerian history.
In the immediate aftermath, around 50 students managed to escape without assistance, while a further 100 were released on 8 December following sustained security operations.
The release of the remaining 115 pupils has been welcomed as a major breakthrough by security agencies and has brought immense relief to anxious families.