The abductions at St Mary’s School mark the latest in series of attacks targeting Christian institutions.
By Catholics for Catholics
In the latest attack against Catholics in Nigeria, a group of armed men kidnapped various students and staff from a Catholic School.
Fox News reported that Nigerian news outlet Arise TV said 52 children were abducted from St. Mary’s School. The Catholic establishment is located in Agwara local government’s Papiri community, according to The Associated Press, which cited Abubakar Usman, the secretary to the Niger state government. The outlet added that Usman was not specific on how many children were kidnapped in the assault.
Military and security forces were sent to the area where the attack happened in the early hours of Friday, said the Niger State Police Command. Additionally, AP reported that the Niger State Police Command said St. Mary’s educates students ages 12–17.
Pray for the children and teachers kidnapped from a Nigerian Catholic school yesterday.
— Catholics for Catholics 🇺🇲 (@CforCatholics) November 21, 2025
We must stand with our Catholic brothers and sisters throughout the world who are attacked for their faith in Our Lord. pic.twitter.com/TkzSJSsDdU
The series of attacks in Nigeria against Christians has driven President Donald Trump to declare the West African nation a “country of particular concern” over the persecution of Christians. Nevertheless, the Nigerian government has challenged the U.S.’s claims.
Mike Waltz, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, held an event on Tuesday stressing the continuing violence in Nigeria. Waltz called the killings of Christians in Nigeria “genocide wearing the mask of chaos.” “Folks, we have an entire faith that is being erased, one bullet at a time, one torched Bible at a time,” Waltz said.
Nicki Minaj, the famous superstar of rap music who has been vocal about her support for the Trump administration’s efforts to fight the persecution of Christians in Nigeria, spoke at Waltz’s event. She bemoaned that “families have been torn apart, and entire communities live in fear constantly, simply because of how they pray.”
The St. Mary’s attack follows another episode earlier this week in which gunmen kidnapped 25 girls from a boarding school in Nigeria’s Kebbi State and killed at least one staffer. The search for the abducted schoolgirls is still underway.
Rapper Nicki Minaj speaks at the UN thanking President Trump for shining a light on the thousands of Christians being killed in Nigeria. pic.twitter.com/74DeZgv0Kq
— Catholics for Catholics 🇺🇲 (@CforCatholics) November 18, 2025
Another group of gunmen attacked the Christ Apostolic Church on Wednesday, killing at least two people and abducting the pastor and 38 worshippers, according to Reuters. In a video of the attack, which was reviewed and verified by Reuters, armed men can be seen going into the church and grabbing the belongings of the worshippers as gunshots can be heard. The outlet later reported that a church official said the gunmen demanded a ransom of 100 million naira (roughly $69,000) per worshipper.
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