Several parents welcomed the return on late Tuesday night of their children, who were abducted last month when gunmen stormed their school. “It has not been easy for me. But today, in fact, I have a little bit of joy, especially because there is still one abducted. But I am now happy with this one that I have gotten,” Luka Illaya, one of the parents in the hall, told The Associated Press. One of his sons was released, while another remains with the abductors.
His son, who hugged him tightly, is one of the 100 students released over the weekend after they were abducted from a Nigerian Catholic school on November 21. The Papiri school abductions, where more than 300 students and staff were taken, were the latest in a string of mass abductions that have rocked Nigeria in the past decade. 25 students were also abducted in nearby Kebbi State. The Government did not release any details about the released Papiri students and the fate of at least 150 other children and staff who remain in captivity.
Fifty of the students escaped in the hours following the abductions. “We thank all the security agencies that helped in the rescue of our children. We are pleading that God should give them more strength to be able to rescue the remaining children,” Reverend Sister Felicia Gyang, the principal of the school, said. Analysts say children are a target for armed groups seeking a high ransom from the Government and communities.
Such abductions have often commanded national and international attention, with the pope last month calling for the release of the Papiri students address from the Vatican. Since 2014, when Boko Haram kidnapped 276 girls from Chibok, there have been at least a dozen mass school abductions with at least 1,799 students kidnapped, according to an AP tally.
