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Armed attackers have kidnapped over 300 students and teachers in what appears to be the biggest group abductions in recent Nigerian history, as stated by a Christian organization on Saturday.

Growing Emergency in Educational Institutions

The pre-dawn Friday raid on St Mary's co-educational school in western Nigeria came just a short time after gunmen stormed a high school in adjacent Kebbi state, abducting 25 young women.

Earlier accounts had stated 227 victims were seized, but new numbers were released after a comprehensive counting process confirmed that 303 pupils and 12 instructors had been kidnapped.

The abducted children, aged between eight and 18 years, represent nearly 50 percent of the school's overall enrollment of 629.

Official Response and Safety Actions

Local officials have confirmed that security agencies and law enforcement are presently conducting a comprehensive census to establish the precise number of missing people.

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

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

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

Recent Violent Events

The school abductions constitute the latest in a sequence of safety incidents that have shaken the country, including an attack on a church in western Nigeria where assailants shot dead two people and seized numerous congregation members during a live-streamed service.

These incidents have occurred against the background of international attention on Nigeria's safety situation.

Historical Context

Nigeria continues to be scarred by the legacy of the mass kidnapping of nearly 300 female students by jihadist group Boko Haram in Chibok over a ten years ago, with several of those victims still missing.

Firsthand Testimonies

In a concerning video clip shared by religious organizations, a upset employee described hearing the sounds of motorcycles and cars before hearing "violent banging" on multiple gates of the compound.

"Children were weeping," the witness said, recounting her terror while looking for access to the section where the crying was loudest.

The regional Catholic diocese stated that the "attackers operated violently and uninterrupted for nearly three hours, moving through sleeping quarters."

Public Response and Concerns

Meanwhile, about 600km away on the outskirts of Abuja, concerned parents were collecting their children from educational institutions following the shutdown order.

One mother, a 40-year-old nurse, voiced her shock at the magnitude of the abduction, questioning how 300 students could be abducted simultaneously.

She stated that the "authorities is not doing enough to combat insecurity," and expressed approval for external assistance to "resolve this situation."

Ongoing Security Issues

For years, well-equipped bandit groups have been carrying out murders and kidnappings for money in remote areas of northern and central Nigeria, where state presence is minimal.

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

These groups maintain camps in extensive woodland areas straddling multiple states in the west of Nigeria.

While these bandits have no political motives and are primarily motivated by financial gain, their increasing alliance with extremist groups from the north-east has become a major source of concern for officials and security analysts alike.