Birnin Kebbi, Nigeria – November 26, 2025 – In a moment of profound relief for families, educators, and an entire nation weary from relentless insecurity, the 24 schoolgirls abducted from the Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School in Maga, Kebbi State, have been successfully rescued. The girls, aged between 12 and 15, walked out of captivity on Tuesday morning, November 25, 2025, thanks to a meticulously coordinated operation involving Nigeria’s top security apparatus. This development marks a rare victory in the country’s protracted battle against banditry and terrorism, but it also underscores the deepening crisis of school abductions that continue to scar northern Nigeria.
The announcement came swiftly from the highest echelons of government. President Bola Tinubu expressed unbridled joy while issuing a stern directive to security forces. “I am relieved that all the 24 girls have been accounted for,” Tinubu said. “Now, we must put as a matter of urgency more boots on the ground in the vulnerable areas to avert further incidents of kidnapping. My government will offer all the assistance needed to achieve this.” The president’s words echoed a broader call for intensified action, as he tasked agencies with rescuing other captives still held by similar groups.
The rescue operation, executed in the dense Bagega Forest near the Niger border, was a joint effort spearheaded by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) and the State Security Service (SSS), also known as the Department of State Services (DSS). According to official briefings, the mission combined non-kinetic negotiations—likely involving community elders and informants—with tactical interventions from military and police units. No ransom was paid, a point emphatically stated by Kebbi State Governor Nasir Idris during a press conference in Birnin Kebbi. “This was the work of our brave men and women in uniform, not a transaction with criminals,” Idris affirmed, emphasizing the operation’s success without compromising national policy against payoffs to bandits.
Details of the girls’ condition remain guarded, but initial reports indicate they are physically stable, though undergoing medical and psychological evaluations in the state capital. School principal Musa Rabi Magaji confirmed that all 24 were in the custody of authorities for debriefing and family reunions. “They are safe, but the trauma is evident. We will support their return to normalcy,” Magaji said, his voice heavy with the weight of the past week’s anguish. Among the first families to reunite was that of Abdulkarim Abdullahi, whose daughters—12-year-old twins—were among the abductees. “The past few days have been hell for us, especially their mother,” Abdullahi shared in a tearful interview. “Authorities called saying they were en route to Birnin Kebbi. I am overjoyed; this is a miracle.”
To fully grasp the significance of this rescue, one must rewind to the harrowing events of November 17, 2025. At approximately 4:30 a.m., as the pre-dawn chill hung over the sleepy town of Maga in Danko-Wasagu Local Government Area, a band of heavily armed assailants—suspected to be members of a local bandit syndicate—stormed the school’s dormitory. The attackers, numbering around 20, moved with chilling precision, exploiting a brief security lapse. Just an hour earlier, a routine military patrol had departed the premises after a courtesy visit, leaving the school lightly guarded by a single watchman who was overpowered and injured.
Chaos erupted as gunfire shattered the morning quiet. The bandits rounded up students from their beds, herding at least 25 girls into the surrounding bush. In the melee, the school’s vice principal, Malam Hassan Makuku, a respected educator in his late 40s, was fatally shot while attempting to shield the students. His wife, Amina Hassan, later recounted the horror to reporters, standing outside the bloodstained room where her husband fell. “He heard the shots and ran to protect them. They took him from us,” she said, her hijab drawn tight against the wind. Makuku’s death cast a long shadow over the community, where he was known for mentoring at-risk youth and advocating for girls’ education in a region plagued by cultural barriers.
Eyewitness accounts, pieced together from surviving students and villagers, paint a picture of terror. One girl, who escaped during the initial raid by hiding under a bed, described the attackers shouting orders in Hausa, demanding compliance to avoid further violence. “They said if we ran, they’d kill us all,” she recalled. By dawn’s light, the dust settled on an emptied dormitory, with empty beds and scattered belongings bearing silent witness to the raid. Initial reports varied on the number abducted—ranging from 25 to 26—but authorities settled on 25 after cross-verification.
Hope flickered early when one girl, identified as Hauwa’u Imam, broke free from the captors’ den later that day. Trekking miles through thorny underbrush, she stumbled into a nearby village, alerting authorities and reducing the tally to 24 in captivity. A second girl, Salma, had evaded capture altogether during the assault. Kebbi State’s Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Halima Bande, confirmed their safe return, praising the duo’s resilience. Hunters and vigilantes from surrounding forests joined federal forces in the search, combing the rugged terrain that borders volatile states like Zamfara and Sokoto—known bandit strongholds.
The Kebbi incident did not occur in isolation; it ignited a terrifying chain reaction. Within days, copycat abductions struck Eruku in Kwara State, where 38 church members were seized, and Papiri in Niger State, targeting a Catholic school and snatching over 300 students and staff. By Sunday, November 23, all 38 from Eruku had been freed, and 50 from the Niger school returned home, per the Christian Association of Nigeria’s state chairman. Yet, dozens remain missing, fueling public outrage and demands for systemic reform.
Minister of State for Defence Bello Matawalle hailed the Kebbi rescue as a “tactical triumph,” crediting President Tinubu’s direct oversight. “This mission was carried out in line with the president’s directive to ensure their safe return,” Matawalle stated, underscoring the role of intelligence-driven operations. Social media erupted with jubilation, as posts proclaimed, “Alhamdulillah! Indeed Allah is great,” alongside videos of the girls’ convoy arriving in Birnin Kebbi. The hashtag #BringBackKebbiGirls, which trended globally in the abduction’s aftermath, morphed into celebrations of resilience.
However, this triumph is bittersweet against Nigeria’s grim backdrop of insecurity. Since the infamous 2014 Chibok abduction—where Boko Haram seized 276 girls, with over 100 still missing—more than 1,500 students have been kidnapped in mass raids, according to Amnesty International estimates. Northern states like Kebbi, once relatively insulated, now grapple with spillover from jihadist insurgencies and resource-driven banditry. Economic desperation, exacerbated by inflation and unemployment, has swelled criminal ranks, with groups exploiting porous borders for arms and ransom.
Governor Idris, in his address, vowed enhanced school security, including 24-hour patrols and fortified perimeters. “No child should fear learning,” he declared, announcing counseling programs for the freed girls and scholarships in Makuku’s honor. Civil society groups welcomed the news but urged “stronger, proactive measures” to dismantle bandit networks.
As the sun sets on Maga, the school reopens its gates tentatively, a symbol of defiance. The girls’ return is not just a rescue; it’s a reminder of education’s fragility in conflict zones. For parents like Abdullahi, it’s a second chance at normalcy. For Nigeria, it’s a fragile hope that security can prevail over fear. Yet, with ongoing abductions in Niger and beyond, the fight is far from over. President Tinubu’s charge to “rescue others still in captivity” resonates as both promise and plea, in a nation where every dawn brings new threats.
