Last group of freed Nigerian schoolchildren to be reunited with their families

A final group of 130 kidnapped Nigerian schoolchildren freed by the government on Sunday are expected to be reunited with their families in the central Niger state on Monday, ending a month-long ordeal that drew global concern.



The children were among more than 300 pupils and 12 staff seized from St. Mary's Catholic School in Papiri, a hamlet seven hours' drive from the Niger capital Minna, on November 21 in one of the country's worst school kidnappings in recent years.



They are due to be taken to Minna later on Monday to meet their relatives in time for Christmas celebrations, President Bola Tinubu's spokesperson said. One hundred students were released on December 8, while 50 pupils escaped in the immediate hours after they were kidnapped.



Presidency spokesperson Bayo Onanuga said in a post on X on Sunday that the latest release followed "a military-intelligence-driven operation," but did not provide details.



It was unclear whether the children were freed through negotiations with their captors - or payments to them - or in a security raid. Details about the kidnapped staff were also not provided.