A Catholic diocese in Nigeria’s north-central region Thursday said that all schoolchildren and teachers taken by gunmen from their school in November have been “accounted for” and “reunited” with their families. The clarification comes after some 35 students were initially thought to be unaccounted for after the government ended rescue efforts. The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) had said in November that 315 students and staff were kidnapped from St Mary’s co-educational boarding school in Papiri, Niger State. However, the Catholic Church said on Thursday that about 35 students who either escaped or had not been abducted in the first place did not show up for a headcount immediately after the kidnapping. Yohanna insisted that the “discrepancies were not in any way intended to mislead the public or cause unnecessary panic”.

Source: The Guardian December 26, 2025 01:41 UTC