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Gunmen have seized more than 300 schoolchildren and staff in what appears to be the biggest collective seizures in modern Nigerian times, according to a religious organization on Saturday.

Growing Emergency in Educational Institutions

The pre-dawn Friday attack on St Mary's co-educational school in Niger state happened just days after gunmen attacked a high school in adjacent Kebbi state, taking 25 young women.

Earlier accounts had stated 227 victims were taken, but updated figures were released after a comprehensive assessment confirmed that 303 students and 12 educators had been kidnapped.

The abducted pupils, aged between eight and 18 years, constitute nearly 50 percent of the school's total enrollment of 629.

Official Response and Safety Measures

State officials have confirmed that intelligence agencies and law enforcement are presently performing a thorough census to determine the exact number of missing people.

In response to the increasing security concerns, the state government has directed the closure of every schools in the region, with nearby states adopting comparable precautionary steps.

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

President Bola Tinubu has postponed international engagements, including attendance at the G20 summit in Johannesburg, to concentrate on managing the crisis.

Latest Violent Events

The school abductions represent the most recent in a series of security incidents that have shaken the country, including an attack on a place of worship in western Nigeria where assailants killed two people and seized numerous worshipers during a live-streamed service.

These incidents have taken place against the backdrop of global focus on Nigeria's safety situation.

Historical Background

Nigeria continues to be traumatized by the memory of the mass abduction of almost 300 female students by jihadist group Boko Haram in Chibok more than a ten years ago, with several of those girls still missing.

Firsthand Accounts

In a disturbing video clip shared by religious organizations, a frightened school staff member recounted hearing the noise of motorcycles and cars before hearing "forceful banging" on various gates of the compound.

"Students were screaming," the witness reported, recounting her terror while searching for keys to the section where the crying was loudest.

The regional Catholic authority stated that the "assailants acted aggressively and without interruption for nearly three hours, moving through dormitories."

Citizen Response and Fears

Meanwhile, about 600km away on the outskirts of Abuja, concerned parents were collecting their children from educational institutions following the shutdown directive.

One mother, a 40-year-old nurse, expressed her disbelief at the scale of the abduction, asking how 300 students could be taken at once.

She stated that the "authorities is not doing enough to combat the security crisis," and expressed approval for external assistance to "resolve this situation."

Ongoing Security Issues

For a long time, heavily armed bandit groups have been carrying out murders and kidnappings for ransom in remote areas of northwest and central Nigeria, where state presence is limited.

While nobody has taken credit for the recent incidents, criminal groups seeking financial compensation frequently target schools in rural areas where protection is inadequate.

These groups maintain camps in vast forest areas spanning several states in the west of Nigeria.

While these criminals have no political motives and are primarily motivated by financial gain, their growing cooperation with jihadist groups from the northeastern region has become a significant cause of concern for officials and security analysts alike.