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Gunmen have kidnapped more than 300 students and teachers in what is considered the most significant collective seizures in modern Nigerian times, as stated by a Christian organization on the weekend.

Growing Emergency in School Facilities

The pre-dawn Friday assault on St Mary's mixed-gender school in Niger state came just days after armed men stormed a high school in adjacent Kebbi state, abducting 25 girls.

Earlier accounts had indicated 227 individuals were taken, but revised figures were released after a thorough assessment determined that 303 students and 12 educators had been abducted.

The abducted children, aged between eight and 18 years, represent nearly half of the school's total enrollment of 629.

Official Response and Safety Actions

Local officials have stated that security agencies and police are currently performing a thorough head count to determine the exact number of abducted people.

In response to the growing safety fears, the state government has directed the closure of every schools in the region, with neighboring states following comparable precautionary actions.

Furthermore, the federal education department has ordered the provisional closure of 47 residential high schools throughout the country.

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

Recent Violent Incidents

The school kidnappings constitute the latest in a sequence of security breaches that have shaken the nation, including an assault on a church in western Nigeria where gunmen shot dead two people and abducted numerous worshipers during a live-streamed service.

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

Past Background

Nigeria continues to be traumatized by the legacy of the large-scale kidnapping of almost 300 female students by jihadist group Boko Haram in Chibok more than a ten years ago, with some of those girls still unaccounted for.

Firsthand Accounts

In a concerning video clip shared by religious organizations, a upset school staff member recounted hearing the noise of motorcycles and cars before experiencing "forceful banging" on various entrances of the compound.

"Children were weeping," the witness reported, recounting her fear while looking for keys to the section where the screaming was most intense.

The regional Catholic diocese stated that the "attackers acted aggressively and without interruption for nearly three hours, searching dormitories."

Citizen Reaction and Fears

At the same time, about 600km away on the outskirts of Abuja, worried parents were collecting their students from educational institutions following the closure directive.

One mother, a 40-year-old nurse, expressed her shock at the magnitude of the kidnapping, questioning how 300 students could be taken at once.

She concluded that the "government is failing to act to combat the security crisis," and expressed approval for international assistance to "resolve this crisis."

Ongoing Safety Issues

For a long time, well-equipped criminal gangs have been conducting killings and kidnappings for money in remote areas of northwest and central Nigeria, where state presence is minimal.

While nobody has taken credit for the recent attacks, criminal groups demanding financial compensation frequently target schools in rural areas where security is weak.

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

Although these criminals have no ideological leanings and are mainly driven by financial gain, their growing cooperation with extremist groups from the north-east has become a significant cause of worry for authorities and experts alike.