The Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced, on Wednesday, that a group of Polish students and a lecturer detained in Nigeria have been released.
The University of Warsaw students were arrested earlier this month in Kano after being accused of raising Russian flags during anti-government protests.
The protests, which began on August 1, drew tens of thousands of Nigerians, major youths, into the streets, fueled by widespread discontent over President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms.
The reforms, including the partial removal of fuel and electricity subsidies and currency devaluation, have led to soaring inflation, causing severe economic strain across the country.
Nigerian authorities initially claimed that the Polish nationals were actively involved in the protests by waving Russian flags—an act that raised concerns, given Russia’s increasing presence in West Africa.
However, the Polish foreign ministry quickly dismissed these allegations, stating that the students were simply near the protest and not participating in it.
After their release, the students remained in Kano, according to a social media post by the Polish foreign ministry, which expressed gratitude to those involved in securing their freedom.
“The Polish students have been released and are in Kano,” the Polish foreign ministry said in a post on social media platform X. “Thank you to everyone involved in the release of the Polish citizens!”
When asked when they would return to Poland, the MFA spokesman, Paweł Wroński, replied that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would organise transport as soon as possible, but when exactly the students would return to Poland would depend on their individual plans.
“I think they will be in the country by the end of the week,” Wroński said, adding that the University of Warsaw would also be involved in the transport.
When asked why the students were arrested, Wroński said: “They were in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
