By XINHUA

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Lagos,

Nigerian police confirmed on Monday 27 persons earlier kidnapped by gunmen from a secondary school in the country's northwestern state of Kaduna had regained their freedom.

A group of unidentified gunmen stormed the Bethel Baptist High School in Damishi town, Chikun local government area, in the early hours of Monday, taking away an unknown number of students, the police said Monday.

Mohammed Jalige, a police spokesperson in Kaduna, who updated the figure in a statement sent to Xinhua, said security operatives were immediately mobilised to the area after the police received a report that armed bandits gained access into the school.

"The gunmen overpowered the school's security guards and made their way into the students' hostel, where they abducted an unspecified number and took them to the forest," Jalige said.

According to the police spokesperson, a joint team of the Nigeria police, army and navy succeeded in rescuing 26 students and a female teacher safely while in pursuit of the attackers.

He said the rescue operation is still ongoing to ensure that all victims are safely returned.

Strategic measures will be in place to forestall further occurrence of "such a dastardly act of criminality against innocent children," he said.

There have been a series of gunmen attacks in Nigeria in recent months, leading to deaths and kidnappings.