At least 137 of nearly 300 Nigerian children abducted more than two weeks ago from their school in the northwestern state of Kaduna were released on Sunday, the West African nation’s military said.
An earlier statement from the government suggested that all the students were freed.
Kaduna State Gov. Uba Sani did not give details of the release of the students, who were abducted from their school in the remote town of Kuriga on March 7. In a statement, he thanked Nigerian President Bola Tinubu “particularly ensuring that the abducted Kuriga school children are released unharmed”.
Mr. Tinubu had vowed to rescue the children “without paying a dime” as ransom.
Abductions of students from schools in northern Nigeria are common and have been a major source of concern since 2014, when Islamic extremists kidnapped over 200 schoolgirls in Borno state’s Chibok village.
In recent years, abductions have been concentrated in the country’s northwestern and central regions, where dozens of armed groups often target villagers and travellers for ransom.
