Armed robbers attacked a school in the Nigerian town of Korega at the start of classes on Thursday. They took many students with them. The perpetrators were riding motorcycles through the school corridors.
This is the second major kidnapping in Nigeria in less than a week. More than two hundred people were kidnapped in the northeast of the country a few days ago. There are several gangs active in northern Nigeria who kidnap people on a large scale for ransom. For years they have been attacking farmers, herders, car drivers, truck drivers, church or mosque goers, and entire villages and schools.
According to media, a long-standing local conflict over land use may also play a role in Thursday's kidnapping. The exact number of victims is unknown. The teachers fled with the students from the thieves. The students also fled on their own. They hid.
A school board member said 125 students at the elementary school and 187 students at the high school were reported missing, 25 of whom have now been found missing.
