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Armed attackers have abducted over 300 students and teachers in what is considered the biggest mass kidnappings in modern Nigerian history, as stated by a religious organization on Saturday.

Growing Crisis in School Institutions

The Friday morning assault on St Mary's co-educational school in western Nigeria happened just a short time after gunmen stormed a secondary school in adjacent Kebbi state, abducting 25 female students.

Earlier reports had suggested 227 individuals were taken, but updated numbers surfaced after a thorough counting process established that 303 students and 12 educators had been kidnapped.

The taken pupils, aged between eight and 18 years, account for nearly half of the school's total student population of 629.

Official Response and Security Measures

State officials have confirmed that security departments and police are currently conducting a thorough assessment to establish the precise number of missing individuals.

In reaction to the growing safety fears, the state government has ordered the shutting of all schools in the region, with nearby states following similar precautionary measures.

Additionally, the federal education ministry has directed the temporary closure of 47 residential high schools across the country.

President Bola Tinubu has cancelled overseas engagements, including participation at the G20 summit in Johannesburg, to focus on managing the situation.

Recent Violent Incidents

The school abductions constitute the latest in a sequence of security breaches that have shaken the country, including an attack on a church in western Nigeria where gunmen killed two individuals and seized dozens worshipers during a online broadcast service.

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

Historical Background

Nigeria remains traumatized by the memory of the large-scale abduction of nearly 300 female students by jihadist group Boko Haram in Chibok more than a decade ago, with some of those victims still unaccounted for.

Eyewitness Testimonies

In a disturbing recording shared by Christian groups, a distraught employee recounted hearing the noise of motorcycles and vehicles before experiencing "violent banging" on multiple entrances of the compound.

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

The local Catholic diocese confirmed that the "assailants acted violently and without interruption for nearly three hours, moving through sleeping quarters."

Citizen Reaction and Fears

Meanwhile, about 600km away on the periphery of Abuja, worried parents were collecting their children from educational institutions following the shutdown directive.

One parent, a 40-year-old healthcare worker, voiced her disbelief at the scale of the abduction, asking how 300 students could be taken at once.

She concluded that the "authorities is not doing enough to curb insecurity," and voiced approval for external assistance to "resolve this situation."

Ongoing Security Issues

For a long time, heavily armed criminal gangs have been conducting killings and abductions for ransom in rural areas of northwest and middle Nigeria, where state presence is limited.

While nobody has claimed responsibility for the latest incidents, criminal groups demanding ransom payments frequently attack schools in countryside locations where protection is inadequate.

These groups maintain bases in vast woodland areas spanning multiple states in the west of Nigeria.

Although these criminals have no ideological leanings and are mainly driven by financial gain, their increasing cooperation with jihadist groups from the northeastern region has become a significant source of concern for officials and security analysts alike.