24 schoolgirls abducted from Kebbi in Nigeria have been rescued,
president says
[November 26, 2025]
By TUNDE OMOLEHIN, OPE ADETAYO and MARK BANCHEREAU
SOKOTO, Nigeria (AP) — All 24 schoolgirls held by assailants following a
mass abduction last week from a school in northwestern Nigeria have been
rescued, the country's president announced Tuesday.
A total of 25 girls were abducted Nov. 17 from the Government Girls
Comprehensive Secondary School in Kebbi state’s Maga town, but one of
them was able to escape the same day, the school’s principal said. The
remaining 24 were all rescued, according to a statement from President
Bola Tinubu, though no details were released about the rescue.
“I am relieved that all the 24 girls have been accounted for. Now, we
must put as a matter of urgency more boots on the ground in the
vulnerable areas to avert further incidents of kidnapping,” the
statement quoted Tinubu as saying.
The attack in Kebbi was among a spate of recent mass abductions in
Nigeria, including a raid Friday on the Saint Mary’s School in
north-central Niger state in which more than 300 students and staff from
the Catholic school were abducted. Fifty students escaped over the
weekend.
Musa Rabi Magaji, principal of the primarily Muslim school in Kebbi,
told The Associated Press that all of the girls had been released but
that they were still in the custody of authorities. He had no immediate
details of their condition.
Abdulkarim Abdullahi, whose two daughters aged 12 and 13 were among
those abducted, said authorities told him the girls were being taken to
the state capital of Birnin Kebbi.
“I am excited to receive the news of their freedom, the past few days
have been difficult for me and my family, especially their mother,”
Abdullahi said in a telephone interview. “I will wait to see from the
government about their wellbeing, but I can't wait to see them in good
health."
On Tuesday, police said gunmen abducted 10 people in a community in
central Nigeria's Kwara state. The state's police spokesperson Adetoun
Ejire-Adeyemi said the attack took place in the village of Isapa, which
is only 19 kilometers (12 miles) from Eruku, where 38 worshippers were
kidnapped during a deadly church attack last week. The 38 have since
been freed, Kwara Gov. AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq said in a statement on
Sunday.
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A vendor display local newspapers on the street of Lagos with
headlines of the Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School,
where gunmen on Monday attacked the school dormitory, abducted
schoolgirls, in Kebbi Nigeria, Wednesday, Nov. 19 2025. (AP
Photo/Sunday Alamba )
No group has claimed responsibility for the recent abductions, but
analysts and locals say gangs of bandits often target schools,
travelers and remote villagers in kidnappings for ransoms. The gangs
have used kidnapping for ransom as one way of dominating remote
communities with little government and security presence.
Authorities say the bandits are mostly former herders who have taken
up arms against farming communities after clashes between them over
strained resources.
School kidnappings have come to define insecurity in Africa’s most
populous nation, and armed gangs often see schools as “strategic”
targets to draw more attention. At least 1,500 students have been
seized in Nigeria since the famous kidnapping of the Chibok
schoolgirls more than a decade ago, and many of the children were
released only after ransoms were paid.
The kidnappings are happening as U.S. President Donald Trump has
claimed that Christians are being persecuted in Nigeria, although
attacks have affected both Christians and Muslims.
Arrests are rare and ransom payments are common in many of the hot
spots in northern Nigeria.
——
Adetayo reported from Lagos, Nigeria. Banchereau reported from
Dakar, Senegal. Dyepkazah Shibayan in Abuja, Nigeria contributed.
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