Over 300 Catholic Students Kidnapped In Nigeria As Updated Figures Reveal Worst Attack In Years (Worthy News In-Depth)

by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Chief International Correspondent

ABUJA (Worthy News) – Desperate parents in northwest Nigeria were still missing their children Monday as the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) confirmed that suspected Islamic gunmen kidnapped at least 303 students and 12 teachers at a Catholic school — the nation’s largest such attack in more than a year.

The figure is significantly higher than previously reported, following CAN’s completion of a verification exercise and a final headcount of the missing.

Reverend Bulus Dauwa Yohanna, chairman of the Niger State chapter of CAN, said 88 additional students “were also captured after they tried to escape” during the attack on St. Mary’s Primary and Secondary School. The children, both boys and girls, ranged in age from 10 to 18.

Residents and security sources recalled that gunmen, locally known as “bandits,” stormed the school complex in the Papiri ward of the Agwara Local Government Area of Niger State at about 3 a.m. early Friday, breaking into dormitories before marching the captives into the surrounding bushland.

It was the largest mass abduction of schoolchildren in Nigeria since March 2024, when more than 200 students were kidnapped in Kaduna State.

303 STUDENTS AND 12 STAFF ABDUCTED

CAN confirmed the updated tally after visiting the school and interviewing distraught families. Some children briefly escaped before being captured again, Yohanna said.

Police and local officials first confirmed the abduction on Friday but did not release numbers, citing chaos and ongoing headcounts.

By Saturday evening, multiple international outlets — including AP and Reuters — verified that the combined total of abducted students and staff stands at 315 people.

Authorities say at least 50 abducted students have since escaped, reuniting with their families after fleeing into nearby forests.

The Niger State government condemned the mass abduction and confirmed that security and military forces have been deployed to the area to search forests across Niger, Kwara, and Kebbi states.

SCHOOLS CLOSED IN NIGER STATE

Authorities also announced the closure of all schools in Niger State until further notice as a precautionary step following intelligence warnings of imminent attacks.

In a controversial development, the Niger government stated that St. Mary’s School had “ignored an instruction” to suspend boarding operations due to elevated threats — an accusation strongly disputed by CAN and school officials, who insist that no formal directive was delivered to them.

The Ministry of Education said it would review compliance and oversight protocols for all mission schools.

The mass kidnapping came at the end of an already violent week across northwest and central Nigeria. On Monday, armed men stormed a predominantly Muslim girls’ school in Kebbi State and kidnapped 25 students, sparking panic among parents.

That same day, another armed gang swept through several communities in neighboring Zamfara State, abducting 64 villagers, including women and children, in a widening campaign of intimidation and extortion.

CHURCH ALSO UNDER ATTACK

Violence escalated further on Tuesday when gunmen attacked the Christ Apostolic Church in Kwara State during an evening service.

According to several sources, the attackers killed two worshippers before abducting 38 others, dragging them into waiting vehicles and vanishing into surrounding bushland.

The militants later demanded 100 million naira (about $69,000) per hostage — a sum far beyond what most families in the impoverished region can afford.

It remains unclear how many of those abducted in Kebbi and Zamfara were Christians. However, local sources emphasized that Christians are frequently singled out for kidnappings and killings by armed groups operating in the region.

Nigeria’s security crisis drew fresh global attention after U.S. President Donald J. Trump warned of “fast” military action if Nigeria fails to stop the mass killings and abductions of Christians.

SECRETARY MEETS NIGERIA’S SECURITY ADVISER

In the first high-level meeting since the warning, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said he met Nigeria’s national security adviser on Thursday to discuss Christian persecution.

Nigeria’s government has dismissed Trump’s characterization as a “misrepresentation,” despite mounting evidence that over 7,000 Christians have been killed this year alone.

Pope Leo XIV also addressed the crisis, saying during a Mass at St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City on Sunday that he was “deeply saddened” by the kidnappings of students and church workers in both Nigeria and Cameroon, which share a long, porous border.

He made “a heartfelt appeal for the immediate release of all hostages,” urging authorities to take “appropriate and timely action” to secure their freedom. “Let us pray that churches and schools may always and everywhere remain places of safety and hope,” the pontiff added.

His remarks also reflected growing concern over worsening violence in neighboring Cameroon. In recent days, armed groups in the country’s Anglophone northwest abducted six Catholic priests and a lay worker in the Ndop and Babessi areas of the Archdiocese of Bamenda, seizing some as they returned from a church event and others when they attempted to negotiate their release. While several have since been freed, at least one priest remains in captivity, church sources said.

In a separate attack in the same region, a Baptist pastor was also kidnapped in the Jakiri area of Bui Division, underscoring that clergy of multiple denominations have become targets amid Cameroon’s prolonged separatist conflict, Worthy News learned.

CHRISTIANS FACE ESCALATING PERIL

Analysts say criminal gangs often cooperate with Islamist groups such as Fulani militants, Boko Haram, and ISWAP (Islamic State West Africa Province) — networks that routinely target Christians for abductions and killings.

“Jihadist violence continues to escalate in Nigeria, and Christians are particularly at risk from targeted attacks by Islamist militants,” said advocacy group Open Doors.

Nigeria ranks 7th on Open Doors’ World Watch List of countries where it says Christians face the gravest persecution.

“The attacks are shockingly brutal,” the group noted. “More believers are killed for their faith in Nigeria than anywhere else in the world.”

Researchers estimate over 16.2 million Christians across sub-Saharan Africa — including millions from Nigeria — have been displaced by conflict, jihadist attacks, and land-grabs. Many now live in overcrowded displacement camps.

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