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Gunmen have kidnapped in excess of 300 pupils and educators in what appears to be the biggest group abductions in recent Nigerian history, as stated by a religious organization on Saturday.

Escalating Crisis in Educational Institutions

The Friday morning attack on St Mary's mixed-gender school in Niger state happened just days after gunmen attacked a high school in neighboring Kebbi state, taking 25 young women.

Earlier reports had stated 227 individuals were taken, but revised numbers emerged after a comprehensive assessment confirmed that 303 students and 12 instructors had been kidnapped.

The kidnapped students, ranging between eight and 18 years, represent nearly half of the school's overall student population of 629.

Official Reaction and Safety Measures

State authorities have stated that security departments and police are presently conducting a comprehensive census to establish the exact number of abducted people.

In response to the increasing security fears, the local authorities has directed the closure of every schools in the region, with neighboring states adopting comparable precautionary actions.

Additionally, the national education department has ordered the temporary shutting of 47 residential high schools throughout the country.

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

Latest Security Incidents

The educational institution kidnappings constitute the most recent in a sequence of safety breaches that have shaken the nation, including an attack on a church in western Nigeria where assailants shot dead two people and seized many congregation members during a online broadcast service.

These events have occurred against the backdrop of global attention on Nigeria's safety situation.

Historical Context

Nigeria remains scarred by the memory of the mass abduction of almost 300 female students by jihadist group Boko Haram in Chibok over a decade ago, with some of those girls still missing.

Firsthand Accounts

In a concerning video clip circulated by Christian organizations, a distraught school staff member recounted hearing the noise of motorcycles and cars before experiencing "violent banging" on various gates of the school premises.

"Children were crying," the staff member reported, recounting her terror while looking for access to the area where the screaming was loudest.

The regional Catholic authority confirmed that the "assailants acted violently and uninterrupted for almost three hours, moving through dormitories."

Public Reaction and Fears

At the same time, about 600km away on the periphery of Abuja, worried guardians were picking up their children from educational institutions following the shutdown order.

One parent, a 40-year-old nurse, expressed her shock at the scale of the abduction, questioning how 300 students could be taken simultaneously.

She concluded that the "authorities is not doing enough to combat insecurity," and voiced support for external intervention to "resolve this situation."

Continuing Security Challenges

For a long time, well-equipped criminal gangs have been carrying out murders and kidnappings for ransom in rural areas of northwest and middle Nigeria, where government control is limited.

While no group has taken credit for the latest incidents, criminal groups demanding ransom payments often attack schools in countryside locations where security is weak.

These gangs maintain camps in vast woodland areas spanning multiple states in the west of Nigeria.

While these criminals have no ideological leanings and are primarily driven by monetary profit, their increasing cooperation with extremist groups from the north-east has become a significant cause of concern for officials and experts alike.