Crime & Justice

Hundreds of kidnapped schoolboys freed in Nigeria

Lagos, Dec 17 (efe-epa).- Hundreds of students kidnapped on Dec. 11 in a raid on a school in northwestern Nigeria were released Thursday, authorities reported.

The jihadist group Boko Haram claimed responsibility for the kidnapping following the attack on the Government Science Secondary School in the city of Kankara, in the state of Katsina.

“We are extremely happy to announce the rescue of the #KankaraBoys from their abductors. 344 are now with the security agencies and will be moved to Katsina this night,” Katsina Governor Aminu Masari said on Twitter.

Speaking to local media, Masari said that the children had been in a forest in Tsafe, in the neighboring state of Zamfara, since they were kidnapped by armed men.

The students were on their way to Katsina, where they should arrive Friday, and are expected to be reunited with their families after medical check-ups.

It was not clear if the 344 included all the boys abducted in the school raid.

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari welcomed the release of the students on his Twitter account.

“This is a huge relief to the entire country & international community. The entire country is grateful to Governor Masari, the Intelligence Agencies, the Military and the Police Force,” Buhari wrote.

The news came just hours after the release of a video with the Boko Haram logo and allegedly showing some of the students covered in dust in a forested area.

In the recording a visibly distraught schoolboy says in English and Hausa that they had been captured by the group.

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