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Armed attackers have kidnapped over 300 pupils and educators in one of the most significant collective seizures in modern Nigerian experience, according to a Christian organization on Saturday.

Escalating Emergency in Educational Facilities

The pre-dawn Friday assault on St Mary's co-educational school in Niger state occurred just days after armed men attacked a secondary school in neighboring Kebbi state, abducting 25 female students.

Earlier reports had indicated 227 individuals were taken, but revised numbers were released after a detailed assessment confirmed that 303 pupils and 12 teachers had been abducted.

The kidnapped pupils, ranging between eight and 18 years, constitute nearly half of the school's overall enrollment of 629.

Government Response and Security Actions

State authorities have confirmed that intelligence agencies and police are currently performing a thorough head count to establish the precise number of missing people.

In reaction to the growing security concerns, the local authorities has mandated the shutting of every schools in the region, with nearby states following similar preventive actions.

Furthermore, the national education department has directed the provisional shutting of 47 residential high schools across the country.

President Bola Tinubu has called off overseas commitments, including participation at the G20 summit in Johannesburg, to focus on handling the situation.

Recent Violent Incidents

The school kidnappings constitute the latest in a series of security incidents that have shaken the nation, including an attack on a church in the west of Nigeria where gunmen shot dead two people and seized many worshipers during a online broadcast service.

These events have occurred against the backdrop of global attention on Nigeria's security situation.

Past Context

Nigeria continues to be traumatized by the memory of the mass abduction of nearly 300 schoolgirls by extremist group Boko Haram in Chibok over a decade ago, with several of those girls still missing.

Firsthand Testimonies

In a concerning recording shared by Christian organizations, a frightened worker described hearing the noise of motorcycles and vehicles before experiencing "violent banging" on multiple entrances of the school premises.

"Children were screaming," the staff member stated, describing her fear while looking for access to the area where the crying was most intense.

The local Catholic authority confirmed that the "assailants acted aggressively and uninterrupted for almost three hours, searching sleeping quarters."

Public Reaction and Fears

At the same time, about 600km away on the outskirts of Abuja, worried guardians were picking up their children from schools following the closure directive.

One mother, a 40-year-old healthcare worker, expressed her disbelief at the magnitude of the kidnapping, questioning how 300 children could be abducted simultaneously.

She concluded that the "government is failing to act to combat insecurity," and voiced support for external intervention to "salvage this situation."

Ongoing Security Issues

For a long time, heavily armed bandit groups have been carrying out murders and abductions for money in rural areas of northwest and central Nigeria, where government control is limited.

While no group has taken credit for the latest incidents, criminal groups demanding ransom payments frequently attack schools in countryside locations where security is inadequate.

These gangs maintain bases in vast woodland areas spanning several states in western Nigeria.

Although these criminals have no political motives and are primarily driven by financial gain, their growing alliance with jihadist groups from the north-east has become a significant cause of concern for officials and experts alike.