Kidnapped Catholic school pupils will return ‘soon’ – Ribadu

National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, has assured that the more than 300 students and staff abducted from St. Mary’s Co-Education School in Niger State will be reunited with their families “soon,” following a high-level visit to the school community on Monday.

Armed attackers stormed the Catholic boarding school in Kontagora on November 21, taking hundreds hostage in one of the latest incidents in the wave of mass kidnappings that continue to challenge security efforts across the country.

According to Daniel Atori, spokesman for the Catholic bishop overseeing the archdiocese that owns the school, Ribadu told school officials during the visit that the abducted children “are fine and will be back soon.”

“The children are where they are and will come back safely,” the NSA was quoted as saying, though he did not provide further details on their exact location or the status of ongoing rescue operations.

Nigeria has grappled with persistent mass abductions since the 2014 Chibok schoolgirl kidnapping by Boko Haram. In the years since, armed criminal groups commonly referred to as “bandits” have turned kidnapping into what security analysts describe as a lucrative, organised enterprise.

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Lagos-based think tank SBM Intelligence recently noted that kidnapping in Nigeria has evolved into “a structured, profit-seeking industry” generating millions in ransom payments. Recent weeks have seen a rise in incidents, with hundreds abducted in November alone.

The St. Mary’s abduction occurred the same week gunmen kidnapped 25 students from a girls’ secondary school in neighbouring Kebbi State. Authorities say those students were later freed through “non-kinetic” means. Meanwhile, around 50 students abducted from St. Mary’s have also managed to escape.

Ribadu visited Kontagora as part of a federal delegation that included the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and the Director General of the Department of State Services (DSS). The NSA reiterated the government’s commitment to securing the safe return of all victims without delay.