Gunmen in Nigeria kidnapped several students and staff from a Catholic school on Friday morning, marking the latest attack on a Christian institution.
Nigerian news channel Arise TV said 52 children have been kidnapped from St. Mary’s School. The Catholic institution is part of the Papiri community of Agwara local government The Associated Presswhich quoted Abubakar Usman, the Secretary to the State Government of Niger. The outlet added that Usman did not specify how many children were kidnapped in the attack.
The Niger State Police Command said military and security forces were deployed in the early hours of Friday to the area where the attack took place, the AP reported. Furthermore, the Niger State Police Command said St. Mary’s trains students aged 12 to 17.
A security guard was “severely shot” in the attack, the AP said, citing a statement from the Catholic Diocese of Kontagora.
CRASHERS ATTACK CHURCH IN NIGERIA, KILL TWO AND KIDN OTHERS
A drone shot of Christians leaving St. Peter and Paul Catholic Church after Sunday Mass in Palmgrove, Lagos, Nigeria, on November 2, 2025. (Sodiq Adelakun/Reuters)
After the attack, Usman released a statement condemning the kidnappings and saying St. Mary’s had made the decision to reopen despite earlier warnings from the security intelligence about increased threats. according to Arise TV.
“Unfortunately, St. Mary’s School moved to reopen and resume academic activities without notifying the state government or seeking permission, exposing students and staff to avoidable risks,” the statement said.
The attack on St. Mary’s follows a similar incident earlier this week, in which armed assailants kidnapped 25 girls from a boarding school in Nigeria’s Kebbi state and killed at least one staff member. The search for the kidnapped schoolgirls is still ongoing.
On Wednesday, gunmen attacked the Christ Apostolic Church, killing at least two people and kidnapping the pastor and 38 worshippers, according to Reuters. In a video of the attack, reviewed and verified by Reuters, armed men are seen entering the church and taking worshipers’ belongings as gunshots ring out. The newspaper later reported that a church official said the gunmen demanded a ransom of 100 million naira (about $69,000) per worshiper.
Gunmen pick up belongings left behind by worshipers who took cover after hearing gunshots as they walk into a church in Eruku, Kwara State, Nigeria, on November 18, 2025, in this photo obtained from social media. (Social media/via Reuters)
RAP STAR NICKI MINAJ THANKS TRUMP FOR ADDRESSING THE PERSECUTION OF CHRISTIANS IN NIGERIA
Nigeria has suffered a series of attacks on Christians, prompting President Donald Trump to declare the West African nation a “country of particular concern” over the persecution of Christians. However, the Nigerian government has disputed the US claims.
On Tuesday, US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz held an event highlighting the ongoing violence in Nigeria. During the event, Waltz called the killings of Christians in Nigeria “genocide with the mask of chaos.”
“Folks, we have an entire faith that is being erased, one bullet at a time, one Bible burned at a time,” Waltz said.
Nicki Minaj is greeted by U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz prior to a panel discussion titled “Combatting Religious Violence and the Killing of Christians in Nigeria” during the U.S. Mission to the United Nations in New York City on November 18, 2025. (Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images)
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Rap superstar Nicki Minaj, who has been vocal about her support for the Trump administration’s efforts to combat the persecution of Christians in Nigeria, spoke at Waltz’s event. Minaj lamented that “families have been torn apart and entire communities live in constant fear simply because of the way they pray.”
