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Gunmen have seized over 300 pupils and educators in what appears to be the most significant group abductions in recent Nigerian times, according to a Christian organization on the weekend.

Growing Emergency in Educational Institutions

The pre-dawn Friday attack on St Mary's mixed-gender school in Niger state occurred just days after gunmen attacked a high school in adjacent Kebbi state, taking 25 girls.

Initial accounts had stated 227 victims were seized, but new figures surfaced after a thorough verification exercise established that 303 students and 12 educators had been abducted.

The kidnapped students, aged between eight and 18 years, account for nearly half of the school's overall enrollment of 629.

Official Response and Security Measures

Local officials have announced that security agencies and law enforcement are currently performing a thorough census to establish the exact number of missing people.

In reaction to the increasing security fears, the local authorities has directed the closure of every schools in the region, with neighboring states adopting similar preventive measures.

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

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

Recent Violent Events

The school kidnappings constitute the latest in a sequence of safety breaches that have shaken the country, including an assault on a place of worship in the west of Nigeria where assailants shot dead two individuals and seized numerous congregation members during a live-streamed service.

These events have occurred against the backdrop of international focus on Nigeria's security situation.

Past Context

Nigeria continues to be scarred by the memory of the large-scale abduction of nearly 300 schoolgirls by extremist group Boko Haram in Chibok over a decade ago, with some of those victims still missing.

Eyewitness Accounts

In a disturbing recording shared by Christian organizations, a upset worker recounted hearing the sounds of bikes and cars before hearing "forceful banging" on multiple gates of the compound.

"Students were weeping," the witness said, recounting her terror while looking for access to the area where the screaming was loudest.

The regional Catholic authority stated that the "attackers acted violently and without interruption for almost three hours, searching dormitories."

Citizen Response and Fears

Meanwhile, about 600km away on the periphery of Abuja, concerned guardians were picking up their students from educational institutions following the shutdown order.

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

She concluded that the "government is not doing enough to combat the security crisis," and expressed approval for external assistance to "resolve this crisis."

Ongoing Safety Challenges

For years, well-equipped bandit groups have been conducting killings and abductions for money in remote areas of northern and middle Nigeria, where government control is minimal.

While no group has claimed responsibility for the latest incidents, criminal groups seeking financial compensation frequently attack schools in countryside locations where security is inadequate.

These gangs maintain bases in extensive forest areas spanning multiple states in western Nigeria.

Although these criminals have no political motives and are mainly motivated by financial gain, their increasing alliance with extremist groups from the north-east has become a major cause of concern for authorities and experts alike.