Boko haram abducts dozens of students in northeast Nigeria’s borno state

A large number of students were kidnapped after Boko Haram fighters attacked a school in Lassa, located in Borno state, northeastern Nigeria.

The assault took place early in the morning at a government secondary school while a biology exam was underway. The gunmen stormed the school compound and forcibly took many students.

Borno state police spokesman Nahum Kenneth Daso confirmed the incident. He said the attackers arrived on motorcycles, taking advantage of the crowd at the weekly market in Lassa to blend in and approach the school.

Authorities reported that a teacher was killed during the attack, while several students were taken away by the armed group.

Following the abduction, Nigerian security forces launched a pursuit operation. Deputy commander of Operation Hadin Kai, Mohammed Musa Goni, stated that a soldier was killed in a clash with the attackers near the town of Daggu.

He also announced that ten students were rescued during the operation. According to him, the rescued students are in satisfactory condition and receiving medical and psychological support. Search operations continue to locate the remaining hostages and apprehend the perpetrators.

Active in northeastern Nigeria since the early 2000s, Boko Haram has waged an armed insurgency that has killed tens of thousands since 2009. The group has also extended its attacks to Cameroon, Chad and Niger, where violence in the Lake Chad basin has claimed at least 2,000 lives. The conflict has also displaced hundreds of thousands of civilians.