Nigerians welcome 130 schoolchildren and teachers released after mass abduction

MINNA, Nigeria (AP) — Nigerians on Monday got their first look at 130 children and teachers released after being seized in one of the largest mass abductions in the country's history.

Some of the children appeared to be malnourished or in shock as they arrived at a government ceremony. Police said they were freed Sunday, a month after gunmen stormed their Catholic school in Niger state’s Papiri community in a predawn attack.

Authorities said plans were underway to reunite the children with their families before Christmas.

Authorities earlier said 303 schoolchildren and 12 teachers were seized and 50 of them escaped in the hours that followed. But on Monday, Niger state Gov. Mohammed Bago indicated that 230 had been taken and all had now been released.

School kidnappings have come to define insecurity in Africa’s most populous country.

Officials did not say whether a ransom — common in such abductions — had been paid. No group has claimed responsibility, but residents blamed armed gangs that target schools and travelers in kidnappings for ransom across Nigeria’s conflict-battered north.

Most of those seized in the attack were aged between 10 and 17, the school said. One of the children released earlier told The Associated Press that gunmen threatened to shoot them during the attack.

Maj. Gen. Adamu Garba Laka, national coordinator at Nigeria’s Center for Counter Terrorism, told Monday's event that Nigeria will work with community leaders to boost safety in high-risk areas.

Freed students of St. Mary's Catholic School in the Papiri community upon their arrival at the government house, in Minna, Nigeria, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)

A freed teacher of St. the Mary's Catholic School in the Papiri community upon arrival at the government house, in Minna, Nigeria, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)

Freed students of St. Mary's Catholic School in the Papiri community pose for photographs upon their arrival at the government house, in Minna, Nigeria, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)

Freed students of St. Mary's Catholic School in the Papiri community upon their arrival at the government house, in Minna, Nigeria, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)

Freed students from St. Mary's Catholic School in the Papiri community arrive at the government house, in Minna, Nigeria, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba)

U.S. futures are falling as sustained pressure from the bond market and the release of the Federal Reserve's latest minutes capture much of the attention on Wall Street to start the week.

Futures for the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average both declined 0.2% Monday. Nasdaq futures dropped 0.3%.

High yields can slow the economy by making it more expensive for everyone to borrow money, which undercuts prices for stocks and other investments.

Yields are climbing for a range of reasons, including stubborn inflation and high oil prices, ongoing strength in the U.S. economy, as well as rising government debt.

The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury was at 5.27% on Monday, while the yield on the 30-year U.S. Treasury was at 5.63%. Both yields have recently surged to more than 20-year highs.

That has raised the level of interest for the release Wednesday of Fed minutes from the central bank's September meeting, when U.S. benchmark interest rates were raised for the first time in three years.

It will be a busy week for U.S. economic indicators. Due for release this week are new data covering the health of the U.S. services sector, unemployment and consumer sentiment.

Shares of RXO Inc. jumped more than 20% before the market open after C.H. Robinson Worldwide said it would buy the company in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $5.8 billion. Freight and logistics companies have been raising surcharges rapidly due to inflation and sky-high diesel prices.

In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude dipped 0.5% to $90.68 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 0.7% to $102.91 a barrel.

Oil prices have been yo-yoing lately amid uncertainty about how the war with Iran will reshape the global oil industry.

In Europe, France's CAC 40 edged down 0.8% to 7,833.64, while Germany's DAX rose 0.1% to 25,252.67. Britain's FTSE 100 climbed 0.3% to 10,492.76. Asian markets were higher. Trading was closed in Shanghai and South Korea for national holidays.

In currency trading in Asia Monday, the U.S. dollar climbed to 157.91 Japanese yen from 157.83 yen. The euro cost $1.1204, down from $1.1257.

Yuri Kageyama is on Threads: https://www.threads.com/@yurikageyama

FILE - Signs mark the intersection of Wall Street and Broadway in New York's Financial District on Wednesday Dec.11, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan, File)