Nigerian officials in northeastern State of Borno have said that more than 100 girls are thought to have been abducted in an attack on a school by Boko Haram.
Officials said Boko Haram fighters arrived at the school in the town of Chibok and ordered the hostel’s teenage girls into a long truck and made away with them.
The Agence France-Presse news agency quoted an education officer in the town as saying that the exact number of students missing is difficult to determine as some of the girls had managed to return to their homes while others have not.
“Many girls were abducted by the rampaging gunmen who stormed the school in a convoy of vehicles, some managed to escape while others we not’’, the education officer was quoted as saying.
Local media reported that two members of the security forces had been killed and some 170 houses burnt down during the attack. The security forces have not commented on this report.
This is the first time Boko Haram has involved itself in mass abduction of students in this manner ever since it started the militancy in 2009.
Boko Haram killed some 135 people over the weekend in this same Borno State. A further 72 people were killed when a twin bomb exploded in Abuja on Monday morning. No group has claimed responsibility for the bombing but many suspect Boko Haram to be behind it.
News about Nigeria this week has been killing or series of instabilities although authorities continue to insist that the country is safe.
Nigeria’s security is deteriorating as barely a week passes without Boko Haram militants or any other violence claim innocent lives in the country.
Many political analysts in Nigeria have accused President Jonathan of handling the Boko Haram crisis poorly. They say the army is poorly equipped to engage Boko Haram, making Boko Haram always gaining the upper hand over the military.
Almost 7,000 people have been killed while dozens and dozens of people have been left injured since Boko Haram began their militancy in 2009.
Issaka Adams / NationalTurk Africa News
Writer’s Email Address: Adamsisska@googlemail.com
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