The Catholic Diocese of Kontagora has confirmed that all schoolchildren and teachers abducted from St Mary's co-educational boarding school in Papiri, Niger State, in November 2025 have now been accounted for and reunited with their families. This announcement brings closure to a traumatic six-week ordeal that gripped the nation and drew international attention.
Clarifying the Headcount Discrepancy
Confusion had arisen after the Nigerian government concluded its rescue operations, with an apparent disparity in numbers. The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) had initially reported that 315 students and staff were kidnapped in the November raid. While about 50 escaped immediately, and the government secured the release of around 100 on December 7 and another 130 on December 21, about 35 individuals were still unaccounted for.
Bishop Bulus Dauwa Yohanna of Kontagora provided clarity in a statement on Thursday, December 25. He explained that a headcount conducted immediately after the incident showed 315 persons missing. By Sunday, 23 November 2025, it was confirmed that 50 of those had escaped, reducing the number to 265.
How the Missing 35 Were Found
The bishop detailed that the remaining 35 students, who were the source of the controversy, later appeared during subsequent verification efforts. "Some of the students fled into nearby bushes and did not return to the school before the initial headcount was taken," Yohanna stated. He added that some parents also did not present their children for the initial verification process.
A United Nations source explained to AFP that the accounting was complicated by logistical challenges. The children's homes are scattered across vast rural settlements, with travel to some remote villages taking three to four hours by motorbike, making swift headcounts difficult.
Addressing Controversy and International Reaction
The bishop insisted the discrepancies were unintentional. "They resulted from genuine difficulties encountered in a rapidly evolving, highly sensitive, and emotionally charged situation," he said, emphasizing there was no intent to mislead the public.
The incident had escalated to the international stage when US President Donald Trump alleged mass killings of Christians amounting to "genocide" and threatened military intervention. The church's final accounting directly addresses the uncertainty that fueled such claims.
With this confirmation, the painful chapter for the St Mary's school community in Papiri is officially closed, with all victims now safely home.
