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Gunmen have abducted more than 300 schoolchildren and staff in what is considered the biggest collective seizures in modern Nigerian times, according to a religious organization on the weekend.

Escalating Crisis in School Institutions

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

Earlier accounts had stated 227 individuals were seized, but updated numbers were released after a thorough counting process confirmed that 303 pupils and 12 instructors had been abducted.

The taken students, ranging between eight and 18 years, represent nearly half of the school's total enrollment of 629.

Official Reaction and Safety Actions

Local officials have confirmed that security departments and police are presently conducting a thorough head count to establish the precise number of missing individuals.

In reaction to the growing safety fears, the local authorities has ordered the shutting of all schools in the region, with nearby states following similar precautionary steps.

Furthermore, the federal education ministry has ordered the provisional closure of 47 residential high schools across the country.

President Bola Tinubu has called off international commitments, including attendance at the G20 summit in Johannesburg, to focus on managing the emergency.

Latest Violent Events

The educational institution kidnappings represent the most recent in a sequence of safety incidents that have shaken the nation, including an attack on a church in the west of Nigeria where assailants killed two individuals and abducted dozens congregation members during a online broadcast service.

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

Past Background

Nigeria continues to be scarred by the legacy of the mass kidnapping of almost 300 schoolgirls by jihadist group Boko Haram in Chibok over a decade ago, with some of those girls still unaccounted for.

Eyewitness Accounts

In a concerning recording circulated by Christian groups, a upset worker recounted hearing the noise of bikes and vehicles before experiencing "forceful banging" on multiple entrances of the compound.

"Children were weeping," the witness reported, describing her fear while looking for keys to the section where the crying was most intense.

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

Public Reaction and Fears

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

One parent, a 40-year-old nurse, voiced her shock at the magnitude of the kidnapping, asking how 300 students could be taken simultaneously.

She concluded that the "government is not doing enough to address insecurity," and expressed approval for external intervention to "resolve this crisis."

Continuing Safety Issues

For years, heavily armed criminal gangs have been conducting killings and abductions for money in rural areas of northwest and middle Nigeria, where state presence is limited.

While no group has taken credit for the recent attacks, bandit gangs seeking financial compensation frequently target schools in countryside locations where protection is inadequate.

These groups maintain bases in extensive forest areas straddling multiple states in the west of Nigeria.

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