Twenty-four girls who were abducted from a government boarding school in northwestern Nigeria last week have been released, the state governor's media aide said on Tuesday.
The girls were seized on November 17 when armed men stormed their school in Kebbi state shortly after a military detachment left the premises. The attack triggered a wave of copycat kidnappings in Kwara and Niger states, authorities said.
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday welcomed the girls' release and called on security forces to intensify efforts to free others still held captive.
"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. My government will offer all the assistance needed to achieve this," Tinubu said.
Mass kidnappings for ransom have become common in northern Nigeria, where armed gangs target schools and rural communities, often overwhelming local security forces.
November 17 attack marks a kidnapping wave
Gunmen attacked a government boarding school in Nigeria's Kebbi state on November 17, killing the vice principal and abducting an unspecified number of female students, according to a security report and a school official.
The assailants, armed with rifles and reportedly using coordinated tactics, stormed the Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School in Maga town around 1 a.m. local time.
Vice Principal Hassan Yakubu Makuku was shot dead while resisting the attackers, and a security guard sustained injuries, a teacher told Reuters on condition of anonymity due to safety concerns.
The gunmen fled towards the neighboring state of Zamfara with the abducted students, the teacher said. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, and there has been no immediate comment from security forces.
Northwest Nigeria has experienced recurrent mass abductions from schools by armed gangs seeking ransom payments, despite government promises to enhance security in the region.