The Federal Government has secured the release of 130 schoolchildren abducted by gunmen from St. Mary’s Primary and Secondary School, Papiri, in Niger State.

The announcement was made on Sunday by a presidential spokesman, Mr. Sunday Dare, via his official X handle.

“Another 130 abducted Niger State pupils released, none left in captivity,” Mr. Dare wrote, alongside photographs showing smiling children and a woman.

More than 300 pupils, teachers, and other staff members were kidnapped when heavily armed gunmen stormed the Catholic school in the early hours of November 21.

Sources said the attackers arrived in large numbers, riding on over 60 motorcycles and accompanied by a van. During the assault, the school’s gatekeeper was shot and sustained serious injuries.

The Niger State Government, while condemning the attack, said it had earlier issued directives suspending all construction activities and ordering the temporary closure of all boarding schools within the affected zone as a precautionary measure. The school authorities, however, denied receiving such directives.

The attack was the latest in a series of mass abductions targeting schoolchildren and came less than a week after bandits kidnapped more than 20 girls from the Government Girls Comprehensive Senior Secondary School (GGCSS) in Maga, Kebbi State.

Days later, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) disclosed that 50 of the abducted children had escaped from captivity.

The exact number of those taken from the Niger school remains unclear, as CAN had earlier put the figure at 315.

In response, the Federal Government imposed a 24-hour security cordon and launched aerial surveillance across parts of Kwara, Kebbi, and Niger States. President Bola Tinubu also cancelled a planned international trip to focus on the crisis.

Authorities subsequently ordered the indefinite closure of all schools in Niger State, as well as many federal institutions in high-risk areas.

On December 7, the Federal Government announced the release of 100 of the abducted pupils. Niger State Governor, Mr. Umaru Bago, received the children at the Government House in Minna after they were formally handed over by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).

The abductions sparked global outrage over Nigeria’s worsening security situation, amid reports of kidnappings in several states, including Kwara, where 38 worshippers were abducted, and Borno.

The incidents also drew international attention, particularly from the United States. US President, Mr. Donald Trump, threatened to deploy American forces into Nigeria if the country failed to stem what he described as the killing of Christians by Islamists “committing these horrible atrocities”.

The threat came a day after the US declared Nigeria a “Country of Particular Concern”.