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NIGER State Governor, Umar Bago on Monday, received 100 schoolchildren kidnapped from a Catholic school in Niger State last month.

They were handed over to the state government officials today, a day after military authorities secured their release.

The children – many wearing football jerseys and girls in long robes – were driven into the Niger State Government House in white buses escorted by a dozen military vans and armoured vehicles.

Welcome,” state governor Umar Bago said as he shook hands with some of the children and led them into a hall where the emir and local officials were seated to receive them.

According to a list of the released children seen by AFP, most of those freed are aged between 10 and 17 years.

The release of the students, who were kidnapped two weeks ago, was facilitated by the federal government last night.

The Federal Government has successfully secured the release of 100 primary and secondary school pupils who were abducted by armed bandits from the Apostolic Faith Group of Schools in Kunnu, Kagara area of Niger State on Thursday, 4 December 2025.

The children – comprising 68 primary school pupils and 32 junior secondary students – were freed in the early hours of Sunday following sustained military and security operations coordinated by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) in collaboration with the Niger State Government and local community leaders.

A senior presidency source confirmed to journalists in Abuja that no ransom was paid for the release of the victims, describing the operation as “a decisive victory for the ongoing campaign against terrorism and banditry in the North-West and North-Central zones.

”The source added: “Through a combination of kinetic and non-kinetic measures, including intense pressure from ground troops of Operation Whirl Punch and intelligence-led engagements, the abductors were forced to release the children unharmed.

All 100 students have been accounted for and are currently undergoing medical checks and debriefing at a secure military facility in Minna.

”The students were kidnapped in a dawn raid on the mission school last Thursday when over 50 heavily armed gunmen stormed the premises, overpowered the guards, and herded the pupils into waiting vehicles before fleeing into the vast Kunnu forest spanning Niger and Kaduna states.

The incident had triggered widespread national outrage and renewed calls for decisive action against the escalating wave of school abductions in northern Nigeria.

Niger State Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago, who personally received the freed children alongside the Emir of Kagara, Alhaji Salihu Tanko, praised the Federal Government and security forces for their swift response.“I am overjoyed to see our children back alive and in good health.

This is a testament that when all tiers of government and our traditional institutions work together with the security agencies, we can defeat these criminals,” Governor Bago said.

Parents and relatives who had camped at the school premises since Thursday broke into jubilation as the first batch of the rescued pupils arrived under heavy military escort on Sunday afternoon.

The Apostolic Faith Church, which runs the school, issued a brief statement thanking President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the armed forces, and all Nigerians for their prayers and support.

Mop-up operations are still ongoing in the forest to apprehend the fleeing abductors and prevent further attacks during the festive season.

This latest mass rescue comes barely two weeks after 28 students of the Federal College of Agriculture, Bakura, Zamfara State, regained freedom, bringing the total number of schoolchildren freed by security forces in the past one month to over 220.

The Federal Government has reiterated its zero-tolerance policy on ransom payments and vowed to sustain the current momentum until every abducted citizen is brought home safely.

Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, to represent President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the swearing-in ceremony of President Alassane Ouattara for his fourth term in office.

The inauguration is scheduled for Monday, 8 December 2025, at the Presidential Palace in Abidjan, where Senator Shettima will join other African heads of state, government leaders, and international dignitaries.

President Ouattara secured re-election in the 25 October 2025 presidential poll, extending his leadership of the West African nation, which enjoys long-standing and robust diplomatic ties with Nigeria.

Upon arrival at Félix-Houphouët-Boigny International Airport, Vice President Shettima was received by Côte d’Ivoire’s Prime Minister, Mr. Robert Mambe; Nigeria’s Chargé d’Affaires in Côte d’Ivoire, Mrs. Item Akpama; and other senior Ivorian and Nigerian officials.

The visit underscores Nigeria’s continued commitment to regional solidarity, democratic governance, and constitutional order in West Africa. It also highlights the strong bilateral partnership between Abuja and Abidjan, anchored on cooperation within ECOWAS and the African Union, the Nigeria-Côte d’Ivoire Bi-National Commission, and multiple sectoral agreements spanning security, trade, agriculture, anti-human trafficking efforts, and the digital economy.

A sizeable Nigerian community in Côte d’Ivoire continues to play a vital role in deepening people-to-people and commercial links between the two countries.Vice President Shettima is expected to return to Abuja immediately after the inauguration ceremony.