The release of the abducted students of Government Science Secondary School, Kankara, has been confirmed by Governor Aminu Masari of Katsina State on Thursday night.
Masari said that the boys were at Tsafe, Zamfara State, and would be transported to Kankara on Friday.
The release of the boys, according to him, was facilitated by the leadership of Miyetti Allah.
Mallam Ibrahim Katsina, the Special Adviser to the Katsina State Governor on Security, while also confirming the development, said:
Allihamdulillahi, the boys have been rescued and are now at Tsafe, Zamfara State. But, we shall be moving them to Kankara tomorrow (Friday).
Further speaking on the development, Masari in an interview with DWTV Hausa, said no ransom was paid for the boys’ release.
When asked if ransom was paid before the release of the boys, he said:
We did not pay ransom to the kidnappers, it was purely negotiation.
Explaining how the boys were released, he stressed:
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One hour ago, Nigerian soldiers and government officials that were involved in the negotiation for the release of the kidnapped schoolboys have told us that the whole school children have been released, 344 of them.
Those involved in the negotiation include my adviser, some top military and police operatives, members of Miyetti Allah; (they) where all involved in the negotiation.
Insisting that those who kidnapped the boys were not Boko Haram, Masari said:
They are bandits who kidnapped the schoolboys, not Boko Haram.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, reacting to the latest development, quoted the President Muhammadu Buhari as welcoming the release of the kidnapped students of GSS, Kankara, Katsina State.
Recall that the gunmen suspected to be bandits abducted the students last Friday night from their school’s hostel.