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Gunmen have kidnapped over 300 schoolchildren and staff in what appears to be the most significant collective seizures in modern Nigerian times, as stated by a religious organization on the weekend.

Growing Emergency in School Institutions

The early Friday raid on St Mary's co-educational school in Niger state came just days after armed men invaded a high school in adjacent Kebbi state, taking 25 young women.

Initial accounts had stated 227 victims were taken, but updated figures were released after a detailed assessment established that 303 students and 12 educators had been kidnapped.

The abducted children, ranging between eight and 18 years, account for nearly half of the school's overall student body of 629.

Government Response and Safety Measures

Local officials have stated that security departments and law enforcement are currently performing a comprehensive head count to verify the precise number of abducted individuals.

In reaction to the increasing security fears, the state government has ordered the shutting of all schools in the state, with neighboring states adopting similar precautionary actions.

Additionally, the federal education department has directed the provisional closure of 47 boarding secondary schools across the country.

President Bola Tinubu has called off international commitments, including attendance at the G20 summit in Johannesburg, to concentrate on addressing the situation.

Latest Security Incidents

The educational institution abductions represent the latest in a sequence of security incidents that have rocked the country, including an assault on a place of worship in the west of Nigeria where assailants shot dead two people and seized many worshipers during a online broadcast service.

These incidents have taken place against the backdrop of international focus on Nigeria's safety situation.

Past Background

Nigeria remains traumatized by the legacy of the large-scale abduction of nearly 300 schoolgirls by jihadist group Boko Haram in Chibok more than a ten years ago, with some of those victims still unaccounted for.

Eyewitness Accounts

In a disturbing video clip shared by Christian groups, a frightened employee described hearing the noise of motorcycles and vehicles before experiencing "forceful banging" on multiple entrances of the compound.

"Students were weeping," the staff member said, describing her panic while looking for access to the section where the crying was loudest.

The regional Catholic authority confirmed that the "assailants operated violently and without interruption for nearly three hours, searching dormitories."

Public Response and Concerns

At the same time, about 600km away on the outskirts of Abuja, concerned guardians were picking up their students from schools following the shutdown directive.

One parent, a 40-year-old nurse, voiced her disbelief at the magnitude of the kidnapping, asking how 300 children could be abducted simultaneously.

She concluded that the "government is not doing enough to address insecurity," and expressed support for international intervention to "resolve this crisis."

Continuing Safety Challenges

For years, heavily armed bandit groups have been conducting murders and abductions for money in rural areas of northwest and central Nigeria, where government control is minimal.

While no group has claimed responsibility for the recent incidents, bandit gangs seeking financial compensation often attack schools in countryside locations where security is inadequate.

These gangs maintain camps in extensive forest areas spanning multiple states in western Nigeria.

While these criminals have no political motives and are mainly motivated by financial gain, their increasing cooperation with extremist groups from the northeastern region has become a significant cause of worry for officials and experts alike.