Fifty of the more than 300 children snatched from a Catholic school in Nigeria have escaped their captors, a Christian group said in a statement Sunday.
“We have received some good news as fifty pupils escaped and have reunited with their parents,” said the Christian Association of Nigeria in a statement, adding they escaped between Friday and Saturday.
The incident occurred in the early hours of Friday, when armed men stormed the school, abducting more than 300 students and a dozen teachers.
The Christian Association of Nigeria confirmed the revised figures after a verification exercise, stating that 303 students and 12 teachers were taken. The number of abductions surpasses those recorded during the 2014 Chibok schoolgirl abduction.
Police reported that the attackers arrived around 02:00 local time (01:00 GMT) and took students who were staying in the boarding facilities. Security forces are reportedly combing nearby forests in an effort to rescue the remaining abductees.
Authorities in Niger State ordered the closure of all schools in the state on Saturday in response to the attack. Officials said the school had ignored prior instructions to suspend boarding operations following intelligence warnings, exposing students and staff to “avoidable risk.” The school has yet to comment on this statement.
Friday’s mass abduction is the third in Nigeria in the past week. On Monday, more than 20 schoolgirls were kidnapped from a boarding school in neighbouring Kebbi State, while a church attack in Kwara State left two people dead and 38 others abducted.
President Bola Tinubu has postponed foreign trips, including attendance at the G20 summit in South Africa, to address the country’s escalating security challenges.
The incident has intensified public concern over the rising threat posed by armed gangs, commonly referred to as bandits. Ransom payments have been outlawed in an effort to reduce kidnappings, but attacks continue.
Some international observers have framed recent abductions as part of a wider pattern of attacks against Christians, a claim disputed by the Nigerian government. An official statement emphasised that “terrorists attack all who reject their murderous ideology—Muslims, Christians and those of no faith alike.” Analysts note that in northern and central Nigeria, violence often arises from conflicts over resources, rather than religious identity.
In 2014, Boko Haram abducted 276 girls from Chibok, an event that drew global attention and prompted international campaigns for their release. Many were eventually freed or escaped, though an estimated 100 remain missing
