All 130 schoolchildren who remained captive after the mass abduction from St. Mary's Catholic boarding school are finally free. The successful completion of the operation was announced on Sunday by the spokesman for Nigerian President Bola Tinubu. This abduction was one of the largest audacious attacks by armed gangs in recent years. This is reported by Reuters, writes UNN.
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The children were seized on November 21 in the village of Papiri. At that time, armed terrorists abducted more than 300 students and 12 staff members of the institution. Thanks to the joint efforts of the military and intelligence, the last group of hostages will be able to celebrate the Christmas holidays with their families.
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The remaining 130 schoolchildren abducted by terrorists... have been released. They are expected to arrive in Minna on Monday and rejoin their parents for Christmas celebrations. The release of the schoolchildren followed an operation organized by military intelligence.
The path to liberation was gradual. Immediately after the attack, 50 children managed to escape on their own, and on December 8, the government reported the rescue of the first hundred abductees. According to official data, the total number of rescued students currently stands at 230.
Mass abductions remain a pressing problem for northern Nigeria, where gangs use schools as a means of obtaining ransom. The wave of similar crimes has not subsided in the country since 2014, when Boko Haram militants abducted 276 girls from Chibok, which caused a global outcry.