Greater than 280 Nigerian schoolchildren have been kidnapped within the northwestern city of Kuriga, officers say.
The scholars have been within the meeting grounds round 08:30 (07:30 GMT) when dozens of gunmen on bikes drove by means of the varsity, a witness mentioned.
The scholars, between eight and 15 years outdated, have been introduced together with a instructor, they added.
Kidnapping gangs, generally known as bandits, have taken hundreds of individuals in recent times, particularly within the northwest.
Nonetheless, there had been a discount within the mass abduction of youngsters over the previous yr till this week.
These kidnapped are often launched after a ransom is paid.
The mass kidnapping was confirmed by Uba Sani, the governor of Kaduna state, which incorporates Kuriga.
He mentioned that 187 college students had disappeared from a secondary faculty and 125 from the native major faculty, however that 25 had since returned.
President Bola Tinubu mentioned he was “assured that the victims shall be rescued”.
Sympathizing with the households of those that have been taken, the president added that he had “licensed the safety and intelligence companies to instantly rescue the victims and be sure that justice is served in opposition to the perpetrators of those acts abominable”.
A pupil, believed to be 14 years outdated, who was shot by the gunmen and was being handled in hospital, has since died.
A instructor who managed to flee mentioned native folks had tried to save lots of the youngsters however have been repulsed by the gunmen and one particular person was killed within the shootout.
Zakariyya Nasiru, who had a brother and sister taken hostage, informed the BBC that the household was unable to sleep on Thursday night time “All of us can not sleep as we take into consideration them. We’re right here praying for the his protected return.” Mr Nasiru mentioned a toddler had escaped final night time and had introduced harrowing reviews of his circumstances, together with lack of meals.
Virtually each household within the metropolis is believed to have a toddler amongst these kidnapped.
The armed forces launched an operation to search out them. “No baby shall be left behind,” the governor promised.
In January, bandits killed a college principal within the space and kidnapped his spouse.
The kidnapping comes days after dozens of ladies and kids have been feared kidnapped by the Islamist group Boko Haram whereas gathering firewood in northeastern Nigeria.
Thursday's assault was blamed on Ansaru, a separatist faction of Boko Haram, which kidnapped greater than 200 schoolgirls from the city of Chibok in 2014. Ansaru controls close by areas.
Neither group mentioned it carried out any of the kidnappings.
Many of the kidnaps within the northwest of Nigeria, together with the state of Kaduna, are believed to be the work of legal gangs making an attempt to become profitable from ransoms.
In an try and curb Nigeria's spiraling and profitable kidnapping trade, a controversial regulation that made it a criminal offense to make ransom funds was handed in 2022. It carries a jail sentence of a minimum of 15 years, however nobody isn’t been arrested.
Earlier this yr, the household of a gaggle of sisters kidnapped within the capital, Abuja, denied a police declare that safety forces had rescued the women, saying they’d no alternative however to pay the ransom.
