by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Chief International Correspondent
ABUJA, NIGERIA (Worthy News) – Gunmen abducted 25 students from a girls’ school in northwest Nigeria early Monday after killing at least one staff member, adding to fears among the nation’s Christian minority, police and other sources confirmed.
Investigators said the attackers stormed the Government Girls’ Comprehensive Secondary School in Maga, in the Danko–Wasagu district of Kebbi State, using sophisticated weapons.
Authorities reported the gunmen struck around 4:00 a.m. local time, overwhelming security personnel who briefly returned fire before being overpowered. The heavily armed assailants fled with the 25 schoolgirls into nearby forested areas, according to sources familiar with the situation.
Local officials said the slain staff member was the school’s vice-principal, shot while attempting to resist the attackers. Some reports suggested a security guard may also have been killed, but police have so far confirmed only one fatality.
No group has claimed responsibility. However, the gunmen are believed to be part of the armed “bandit” networks that increasingly target schools in northwest Nigeria for ransom kidnappings—a pattern separate from, but often overlapping with, Islamist insurgent tactics.
MORE MASS ABDUCTIONS
The assault has drawn comparisons to the 2014 Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping, when 276 female students were abducted by Boko Haram, as well as other mass kidnappings of often Christian female students in recent years.
Police, military forces, and local vigilante groups have launched a search-and-rescue operation, combing escape routes and surrounding forests following Monday’s attack.
Kebbi and neighbouring states continue to face rising insecurity, prompting renewed concerns over the protection of schools and vulnerable Christian communities in the region.
In recent years, Christians in Nigeria have faced widespread violence: thousands have been killed and abducted, often by Islamist groups and allied armed bandits.
According to a recent report by the non-governmental group Intersociety, more than 7,000 Christians were killed in Nigeria in the first seven months of 2025 alone.
MANY CHRISTIANS KILLED
The same report estimates that 18,500 Christians have been abducted—and likely not survived—since around 2009.
Investigators also say that over 50,000 Christians have been killed in Nigeria since 2009 by Islamist groups and militants.
Nigeria currently ranks 7th on the Open Doors World Watch List, a ranking of the 50 countries where Christians face the most extreme persecution.
The designation reflects systematic violence, abductions, the destruction of homes and churches, and widespread discrimination against believers.
Nigeria remains one of the world’s most violent countries for Christians, including students, according to investigators.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
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