Nigeria faces another school abduction after gunmen attack a Catholic institution

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Gunmen attacked a Catholic boarding school in a western region of Nigeria and abducted schoolchildren and staff on Friday, the latest in a spate of abductions in Africa’s most populous country just days after 25 schoolgirls were abducted in a neighboring state.

The attack and abductions took place at St. Mary’s School, a Catholic institution in the Agwara local government’s Papiri community, said Abubakar Usman, the secretary to the Niger state government. He neither disclosed the number of students and staff abducted, nor who might be responsible for the attack.

Local media broadcaster Arise TV said that 52 schoolchildren were abducted.

School abduction

The Niger State Police Command said the abductions took place in the early hours, and that military and security forces have since been deployed to the community. It described St. Mary’s as a secondary school, which in Nigeria would serve children between the ages of 12 and 17.

A satellite image shows that the school compound is attached to an adjoining primary school, with more than 50 classroom and dormitory buildings. It’s located near a major road linking the towns of Yelwa and Mokwa.

Dauda Chekula, 62, said that four of his grandchildren, ranging in age from 7 to 10, were among the schoolchildren abducted.

“We don’t know what is happening now, because we have not heard anything since this morning,” Chekula said. ”The children who were able to escape have scattered, some of them ran back to their houses and the only information we are getting is that the attackers are still moving with the remaining children into the bush.”

The statement by the secretary to the Niger state government said that the abduction occurred, despite prior intelligence warning of heightened threats.

“Regrettably, St. Mary’s School proceeded to reopen and resume academic activities without notifying or seeking clearance from the State Government, thereby exposing pupils and the staff to avoidable risk,” it read.

Umar Yunus, a Papiri resident, said there were only local security arrangements and no official police or government forces securing the school at the time of the attack on Friday.

The Catholic Diocese of Kontagora said in a statement that a security staffer was “badly shot” during the attack.

Spate of abductions

The abductions took place days after gunmen on Monday attacked a high school and abducted 25 schoolgirls in the neighboring Kebbi state, in Maga, around 170 kilometers (105 miles) from Papiri. One of the girls later escaped and is safe, the school’s principal said.

In a separate attack on Monday in Kwara state, which borders Niger state, gunmen attacked a church, killing two people. During the attack, 38 worshippers were also abducted, Femi Agbabiaka, secretary of the Christ Apostolic Church, told The Associated Press on Friday. He said that the kidnappers are demanding a ransom of 100 million naira ($69,000) for each person taken.

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu canceled his trip to this weekend’s Group of 20 summit in South Africa over the recent events. Vice President Kashim Shettima will represent the president at the summit, the presidency said on X on Friday.

“We will use every instrument of the state to bring these girls home and to ensure that the perpetrators of this wickedness face the full weight of justice,” Shettima said during a visit to Kebbi state on Wednesday.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks in Niger and Kebbi state, but analysts and locals say gangs often target schools, travelers and remote villagers in kidnappings for ransom. Authorities say the gunmen are mostly former herders who have taken up arms against farming communities after clashes between them over strained resources.

Abductions have come to define the insecurity prevailing in Africa’s most populous nation.

At least 1,500 students have been abducted in the region since Boko Haram jihadi extremists seized 276 Chibok schoolgirls more than a decade ago. But bandits are also active in the region, and analysts say gangs often target schools to gain attention.

Nigeria was recently thrust into the spotlight after U.S. President Donald Trump singled the country out, stating that Christians are being persecuted — an allegation that the government rejected.

While Christians are among those targeted, analysts say that the majority of victims of armed groups are Muslims in Nigeria’s Muslim-majority north, where most attacks occur.

Community upset

Analysts and residents blame the insecurity on a failure to prosecute known attackers, and the rampant corruption that limits weapons supplies to security forces while ensuring a steady supply to the gangs.

Yohanna Buru, a pastor and head of the Peace Revival And Reconciliation Foundation, an organization focused on interfaith dialogue, called on authorities to increase security around schools in areas affected by the security crisis.

“If the government was doing enough, then rampant kidnappings all over the country would not have happened,” he said. “It’s as if they don’t care about the future of our children.”

___

Mark Banchereau reported from Dakar, Senegal. Mohammed Ibrahim contributed to this report from Kaduna.