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The country's government have secured the release of one hundred seized students seized by armed men from a Catholic school last month, as stated by a source within the UN and Nigerian press this past Sunday. Nevertheless, the situation of another 165 individuals thought to continue being held captive stayed unknown.

Context

Last month, three hundred and fifteen people were kidnapped from a co-educational boarding school in north-central Niger state, as the nation was gripped by a series of mass abductions reminiscent of the infamous 2014 Boko Haram abduction of female students in a town in north-east Nigeria.

Some 50 managed to flee soon after, which left two hundred and sixty-five thought to be still held.

Freedom for Some

The a hundred children are set to be transferred to Niger state officials this Monday, as per the United Nations source.

“They will be transferred to state authorities tomorrow,” the official stated to a news agency.

Regional reports also reported that the liberation of the hostages had been achieved, but did not provide details on if it was done through dialogue or military force, or about the fate of the other students and staff.

The release of the 100 children was confirmed to AFP by presidential spokesman Sunday Dare.

Response

“We've been praying and waiting for their release, if it is true then it is a cheering development,” said a representative, speaking for the local diocese of the religious authority which operates the school.

“Nevertheless, we are without official confirmation and have not been duly notified by the national authorities.”

Broader Context

Though abductions for money are widespread in the country as a way for gangs and militants to make quick cash, in a spate of large-scale kidnappings in November, many people were taken, putting an harsh attention on the country's serious security situation.

The nation confronts a years-long Islamist militant uprising in the northeastern region, while criminal groups perpetrate abductions and plunder villages in the north-west, and disputes between agricultural and pastoral communities regarding scarce resources continue in the middle belt.

On a smaller scale, armed groups associated with separatist movements also haunt the nation's unsettled south-east.

Historical Precedent

Among the first mass kidnappings that garnered international attention was in 2014, when about 300 schoolgirls were snatched from their school in the north-eastern town of Chibok by insurgents.

Now, the country's hostage-taking problem has “become a systematic, profit-seeking business” that generated approximately a significant sum between a recent twelve-month period, as per a recent report by a Nigerian consultancy.