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Nigerian authorities have ensured the liberation of a hundred seized schoolchildren captured by armed men from a Catholic school the previous month, according to a source within the UN and regional news outlets on Sunday. However, the situation of an additional one hundred and sixty-five students and staff thought to continue being in captivity was uncertain.

The Incident

During November, three hundred and fifteen people were kidnapped from St Mary’s mixed residential school in central Niger state, as the country faced a wave of group seizures similar to the notorious 2014 Boko Haram kidnapping of female students in Chibok.

Around fifty managed to flee soon after, leaving 265 believed to be in captivity.

Freedom for Some

The 100 youngsters are set to be released to local government officials this Monday, according to the United Nations source.

“They are scheduled to be released to Niger state government on Monday,” the individual told a news agency.

News outlets also reported that the release of 100 children had been obtained, but did not provide details on if it was achieved via talks or a security operation, nor on the fate of the other hostages.

The liberation of the students was announced to AFP by a government spokesperson Sunday Dare.

Response

“We have been hoping and praying for their release, if this is confirmed then it is positive event,” said Daniel Atori, representing the local diocese of the Kontagora diocese which operates the school.

“However, we are not formally informed and have not been duly notified by the government.”

Wider Crisis

While kidnappings for ransom are widespread in the nation as a means for gangs and militants to make quick cash, in a wave of large-scale kidnappings in last month, hundreds were taken, placing an uncomfortable focus on the country's serious state of safety.

The country confronts a years-long jihadist insurgency in the northeastern region, while armed bandit gangs conduct abductions and raid villages in the northwestern region, and clashes between agricultural and pastoral communities concerning diminishing land and resources continue in the country’s centre.

Additionally, militant factions associated with separatist movements also haunt the country’s restive southeastern region.

The Chibok Shadow

One of the first mass kidnappings that attracted worldwide outrage was in 2014, when almost three hundred female students were abducted from their boarding school in the north-eastern town of Chibok by insurgents.

Now, the country's kidnap-for-ransom crisis has “evolved into a systematic, profit-seeking enterprise” that raised approximately a significant sum between July 2024 and June 2025, according to a analysis by a Lagos-based research firm.