Schoolgirl escapes abduction in Kebbi state as hunt continues for 24 others

A schoolgirl abducted along with twenty-four classmates from a dormitory in northwestern Nigeria has escaped and is safe, the principal of the Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School in Maga town, Kebbi state, confirmed to The Associated Press on Tuesday. Another student avoided being taken when gunmen raided the school before dawn on Monday.

The attack occurred when armed assailants scaled the school fence and exchanged gunfire with police officers stationed on the premises. During the raid, the gunmen seized twenty-five students and killed a staff member. The escaped student arrived home late Monday, hours after the kidnapping, while the other girl was able to avoid abduction entirely. Principal Musa Rabi Magaji confirmed both students are safe.

“One is part of the twenty-five abducted, and the other one returned earlier. They are safe and sound,” Magaji said. Video footage verified by AP shows the two schoolgirls, appearing to be in their early teens, sitting quietly surrounded by family and villagers, their hijabs covering their heads. In Nigeria, high school students are typically aged between twelve and seventeen.

Authorities and local officials have intensified rescue operations. Security forces, local vigilantes, and hunters have combed nearby forests where kidnappers often hide, while additional teams were deployed along major roads leading to the school in an effort to prevent the abductors from moving the girls further from the area.

No group has claimed responsibility for the abduction, but analysts and local residents suggest it could involve armed gangs that frequently target schools, travelers, and rural communities for ransom. Authorities report that many of these gangs are former herders who have taken up arms following disputes with farming communities over increasingly scarce resources.

The abduction underscores a growing security challenge in northwestern Nigeria, where attacks on schools have become a recurring threat to children and staff. The safe return of the two girls provides relief to their families, but the remaining twenty-three students are still missing, and security forces continue to coordinate efforts to secure their release.