Nigeria says it has secured release of 100 children
Nearly 100 children kidnapped from a Catholic school in central Nigeria last month have been released, authorities said.
Niger state police chief Adamu Abdullahi Elleman and Bishop Bulus Dauwa Yohanna, who is in charge of the school as the local leader of the Catholic church, told the BBC they had received confirmation that the students were released.
They said the government’s Office of the National Security Adviser informed them that the children would be reunited with their parents starting Monday.
More than 250 students and 12 staff were abducted from St Mary’s Catholic school in Papiri; It was the latest in a wave of mass kidnappings that sent shockwaves across the country.
Details of the release of the 100 schoolchildren remain unclear, including whether it was negotiated or forced and whether any ransom was paid.
Abdullahi Sule, governor of neighboring Nasarawa state, told local media that the federal government played a major role in the release of these men and that behind-the-scenes efforts could not be disclosed for security reasons.
Last week, National Security Advisor Nuhu Ribadu visited Papiri and met with a delegation led by Bishop Yohanna, assuring that the children would soon be rescued and reunited with their families.
Schools and places of worship are increasingly being targeted in the latest wave of attacks in northern and central Nigeria.
A few days before the attack on St Mary’s on 21 November, there had been mass kidnappings: two people were killed and 38 abducted in an attack on the Christ Apostolic Church in Kwara state on 18 November; The day before, two people were killed and 25 Muslim students were kidnapped from the Government Girls Secondary School in Kebbi province.
All those captured in the Kwara and Kebbi attacks were released.
Last week, gunmen kidnapped at least 20 people in two separate attacks: a pastor, his wife and some worshipers were kidnapped at a newly established church in Kogi state, and a bride and her bridesmaids were among those abducted in the predominantly Muslim northern Sokoto state.
It is unclear who is behind these kidnappings; most analysts believe these are carried out by criminal gangs demanding ransom payments. But a presidential spokesman previously told the BBC the government believed these were the work of jihadist groups.
The payment of ransom was made illegal in Nigeria in an attempt to cut off funds to kidnap gangs, but in many cases money is believed to still be distributed.
The security crisis in Nigeria attracted international attention last month after US President Donald Trump threatened to send in troops if the government “continues to allow the killing of Christians.”
Nigerian officials and analysts say that members of all faiths are victims of violence and kidnappings, and that it is not true that Christians are targeted.
