Kebbi State, Nigeria –
One of the 25 schoolgirls abducted during Monday’s attack on the Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School in Maga town has escaped captivity and returned home, school officials confirmed on Tuesday.
The student fled through nearby forests and arrived home late Monday, just hours after armed men stormed the school dormitory before dawn, killing a staff member and abducting the girls. Another student, who was not among the 25 confirmed taken, also managed to escape in the immediate aftermath of the assault.
“One is part of the 25 abducted, and the other one returned earlier,” principal Musa Rabi Magaji told the Associated Press. “They are safe and sound.”
Mass school abductions remain a persistent threat in northern Nigeria, where criminal gangs—often composed of former herders and, increasingly, jihadist elements—carry out kidnappings for ransom. Schools, analysts note, are frequently targeted to draw attention and pressure authorities.
No group has yet claimed responsibility for the raid. Security analysts and local residents say the attackers are likely among the armed groups that regularly kidnap students, travellers, and villagers in remote areas.
The wider insecurity has been fueled by corruption that restricts adequate weaponry for security forces, failures to prosecute perpetrators, and porous borders that allow a constant flow of arms to criminal networks.
Authorities continue to search for the remaining abducted girls as the community awaits updates with growing concern.
