Abducted Niger students, staff reunited with families

The Catholic Diocese of Kontagora has confirmed that all the students and staff abducted from St. Mary’s Catholic School, Papiri, Niger State, have been rescued and reunited with their families.

The Proprietor of the school and spokesperson of the diocese, Rev Fr Bulus Yohanna, who disclosed this in a statement on Thursday, said a total of 230 persons – comprising 204 pupils, 14 students and 12 staff members – were verified to have been abducted during the November 21, incident and later rescued through the efforts of the federal and Niger State governments and security agencies.

Fr Yohanna explained that an initial headcount conducted after the abduction showed 315 persons unaccounted for, and that on November 23, 50 persons reportedly escaped and returned to their families, reducing the number to 265.

A subsequent joint verification exercise revealed that some parents were absent during the process, while a final verification conducted by the school and the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) confirmed that an additional 35 persons had either escaped earlier or were not abducted.

He said the discrepancies arose from the chaotic nature of the incident, noting that some pupils fled into nearby bushes and did not return immediately.

Yohanna expressed gratitude to the government, security agencies, parents, Christian community, media and the public for their support and prayers, while praying for healing for affected families.

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