An unknown number of students and some members of staff were abducted early Friday when suspected terrorists attacked a school in Nigeria’s central state of Niger, local officials said.
The attack occurred at St. Mary’s School, a private institution in the Agwara local government area, at about 2:00 a.m. local time (0100 GMT), Abubakar Usman, secretary to the Niger state government, said in a statement.
“The exact number of abducted pupils is yet to be confirmed as security agencies continue to assess the situation,” Usman said.
This attack is the second such attack this week in the most populous African country, following the kidnapping of at least 25 schoolgirls from a government-run secondary school in the northern state of Kebbi on Monday.
Condemning the incident, Usman said it occurred despite earlier intelligence reports indicating heightened security threats in parts of the state.
According to him, the government, based on the alerts, had ordered the suspension of all construction activities and the temporary closure of all boarding schools in the affected zone. However, St. Mary’s School reopened and resumed academic activities without notifying or seeking clearance from authorities, “thereby exposing pupils and staff to danger.”
Local security agencies had launched a full-scale investigation and search-and-rescue operations to ensure the safe return of the pupils.
Wasiu Abiodun, spokesperson for the Niger state police, told Xinhua by telephone that tactical units of the paramilitary agency, along with military components and other security agencies, had been deployed to the scene, combing nearby forests in an effort to rescue the abducted students. Enditem
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