Nigerian Governor Says 279 Kidnapped Schoolgirls Have Been Released After Being Abducted From School

Photo Courtesy of AP Photo/Sunday Alamba

A group of nearly 300 girls have been released following their abduction from a school in northwest Nigeria by unidentified gunmen on February 26th. They arrived at a government building in Gusau, northwestern Nigeria, a governor said.

“The authorities said 279 girls had been freed, adding that a figure given last week by police that 317 had been kidnapped was no longer accurate.

One official told Reuters news agency that the discrepancy was due to the fact that some girls had fled shortly after being abducted.

Armed men seized at least 317 girls from a high school last week. Such kidnappings have become common in north Nigeria, being carried out for ransom.

“The frequency of mass kidnappings of girls and boys at boarding schools in Northwest Nigeria is rising in part because abduction has become a growth industry amid the country’s economic crisis. The victims are increasingly schoolchildren — not just the rich, powerful or famous,” The New York Times reports.