Armed Group Kidnaps 303 Students and 12 Teachers in Nigeria’s Worst Mass Abduction Yet

Maiduguri, Nigeria (The Uttam Hindu): A major kidnapping incident has shaken Nigeria’s Niger State, where more than 300 children along with school staff were abducted from a Catholic institution. Earlier reports had suggested 227 victims, but this number has now been revised. The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) said that after a verification exercise, its estimate of abducted individuals from St. Mary’s School has increased from 227 to 315. According to CAN, the new figure includes 303 students and 12 teachers. Among them are 88 students who were captured while trying to flee.

This mass kidnapping comes at a time when Nigeria is facing a surge in attacks by armed groups and Islamic militants. The situation has drawn even more attention since U.S. President Donald Trump recently threatened military action over alleged persecution of Christians in the region. According to Reuters, if confirmed, this would surpass the 2014 Chibok incident in which Boko Haram abducted 276 schoolgirls.

The Niger State government said on Friday that the school had ignored instructions to shut down boarding facilities due to heightened security threats. However, Reverend Bulus Dawa Yohanna, CAN’s chairman in Niger, denied receiving any such warning during a visit to the school on Friday night. He stressed that the association is working closely with the government and security agencies to ensure the safe rescue and return of all abducted children.

The central government has ordered nearly 50 federal colleges to close, and several states have shut public schools as well. Friday’s mass abduction was the third major kidnapping in Nigeria in just one week. Earlier on Monday, 25 schoolgirls were kidnapped from a boarding school in Kebbi State, while on Wednesday, gunmen abducted 38 worshippers during an attack on a church in Kwara State.