Gunmen attacked a school in northwestern Nigeria on Thursday and kidnapped at least 287 students, the principal told authorities, the West African country’s second mass kidnapping in less than a week.
Kidnappings of students from schools in northern Nigeria are a frequent occurrence and have been a source of concern since Islamic extremists kidnapped more than 200 schoolgirls in Chibok village in Borno state in 2014.
In recent years, abductions have been concentrated in the northwestern and central regions, where dozens of armed groups often target villagers and tourists for large ransoms.
On Thursday, assailants besieged a public school in Kuriga town, Kaduna state, just as children and students were starting school at about 8 a.m., local residents told The Associated Press.
Authorities earlier said more than 100 students were taken hostage in the attack.
However, Principal Sani Abdullahi told Kaduna Governor Uba Sani who visited the town that the total number of missing persons after the head count was 287.
“We will ensure that all children return. We are cooperating with security agencies,” the governor told villagers in the area, 85 miles from the capital.
No one has claimed responsibility for Thursday’s attack, but an armed group comprised mainly of nomadic herders has been responsible for violent attacks and kidnappings for ransom after decades of pastoral conflict with host communities. is accused of carrying out.
Security forces arrived with the governor several hours later as search efforts expanded, and local residents and parents gathered to await news.
The attack came days after more than 200 people, mostly women and children, were kidnapped by militants in northeastern Nigeria.
In the conflict-hit northern region, women, children and students are often targeted in mass kidnappings, with many victims being released only after paying large ransoms.
Observers say both attacks are a reminder of Nigeria’s worsening security crisis that left hundreds dead in 2023, according to an Associated Press analysis.
Bola Tinubu was elected president of Nigeria last year on a promise to end violence.
But under Tinubu, “there has yet to be any visible improvement in the security situation,” said Oluwole Ojewale, a West and Central Africa researcher at the African Institute for Specialized Security Studies.
