The latest incident in a series of attacks on schools in Nigeria occurred on a much larger scale than previously thought. School authorities said more than 220 students and teachers had reportedly been kidnapped.
According to school authorities, armed attackers at a Catholic school in Nigeria kidnapped at least 215 children and twelve teachers. So far there have been reports of 52 people affected at St. Mary’s School. Mary in Agwara municipality in Niger State.
The state government confirmed the kidnapping but said the exact number of those abducted was still being calculated. Security authorities are searching for the students. According to local TV reports, the school was attended by children between the ages of twelve and 17.
The incident is the third major kidnapping in western Nigeria in a week. Another boarding school and a church were initially attacked on Monday and Tuesday. It is said that more than 60 students and believers were kidnapped.
Increased warning level
According to the Niger state government, there was an increased level of warning before the attack. However, the school resumed operations without consulting the government. It said he had exposed students and staff to avoidable risks.
The Catholic Diocese of Kontagora previously said a security guard had been shot. According to police, the attack occurred early Friday morning. Military and other security forces were deployed to affected communities.
Kidnapping as a source of income
Nigeria has long been hit by attacks by armed groups. Armed groups took advantage of the lack of security presence to attack villages and main roads. They increasingly see kidnapping as a lucrative source of income to finance other crimes and control villages in resource-rich but poorly policed areas of the country.
This latest wave of attacks prompted Nigerian President Bola Tinubu to cancel overseas trips to South Africa to attend the G20 summit and to Angola to attend the EU-Africa summit.
