A student abducted with 24 classmates from a dormitory at the Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School in Kebbi state escaped and returned home late Monday; another pupil not listed among the 25 also fled the scene. The pre-dawn raid killed one staff member. Nigeria's army chief ordered intensified, intelligence-led operations to recover the remaining girls. Analysts say armed gangs — including former herders and jihadist elements — often target schools for ransom, citing corruption, weak prosecutions and porous borders as drivers of insecurity.
Schoolgirl Escapes After Kebbi Dormitory Raid; Search Continues for 24 Other Abducted Students
A student abducted with 24 classmates from a dormitory at the Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School in Kebbi state escaped and returned home late Monday; another pupil not listed among the 25 also fled the scene. The pre-dawn raid killed one staff member. Nigeria's army chief ordered intensified, intelligence-led operations to recover the remaining girls. Analysts say armed gangs — including former herders and jihadist elements — often target schools for ransom, citing corruption, weak prosecutions and porous borders as drivers of insecurity.
06:44 PM, 11/18/2025Security
Schoolgirl Escapes After Kebbi Dormitory Raid; Search Continues for 24 Others
A schoolgirl abducted from a dormitory at the Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School in Kebbi state escaped and returned home late Monday, the school's principal told The Associated Press on Tuesday. The attack, which occurred before dawn, also left one member of the school staff dead.
Principal Musa Rabi Magaji said the student arrived home hours after gunmen stormed the school. Magaji added that another pupil — not among the 25 confirmed abducted — escaped within minutes of the assault.
“One is part of the 25 abducted (and) the other one returned earlier. They are safe and sound,” Magaji said.
Security forces have intensified efforts to recover the remaining girls. Nigeria's Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Waidi Shaibu, visited the school hours after the raid and ordered soldiers to carry out "intelligence-driven operations and relentless day-and-night pursuit of the abductors," according to an army statement.
“We must find these children. Act decisively and professionally on all intelligence. Success is not optional,” the army chief said.
No group has claimed responsibility. Analysts and local residents say the attack matches a pattern used by armed gangs that kidnap schoolchildren, travelers and remote villagers to demand ransoms. Authorities point to gangs largely made up of former herders who have turned to violence following clashes with farming communities over shrinking resources.
Mass school kidnappings have become a recurring problem in northern Nigeria, where dozens of armed groups — including nomadic herdsmen gangs and, more recently, jihadist elements — operate. Observers say schools are targeted because such attacks draw public attention and increase pressure on authorities.
Residents and security experts blame widening insecurity on entrenched corruption that limits weapons and resources for security forces, routine failures to prosecute attackers, and porous borders that allow arms to reach criminal groups.
“Let’s say people have been kidnapped in the markets — it doesn’t go far, (or) if people have been kidnapped on the road — it doesn’t go far. What gains traction is when (it is) strategic kidnapping, like school children,” said Oluwole Ojewale, a security analyst at the Institute for Security Studies.
Authorities continue search operations and intelligence-led pursuits to locate the remaining abducted students. The situation remains fluid and officials have urged the public to report any information that could aid the rescue effort.
Reporting: Asadu reported from Abuja, Nigeria.