Nigeria shuts schools in northern region as mass kidnappings surge

A public school in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Photo by Emmanuel Ikwuegbu @ Unsplash
A public school in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Photo by Emmanuel Ikwuegbu @ Unsplash
  • Scores of students seized in week of escalating attacks
  • Tinubu withdraws VIP police escorts to boost national security

 

ABUJA, NIGERIANigeria has shut dozens of schools indefinitely after a sweeping rise in mass kidnappings, including the abduction of more than 260 pupils in a single incident last week.

The Federal Ministry of Education ordered the closure of 41 Unity Schools — elite federal secondary colleges — as a precaution. At least seven states, including Bauchi, Kwara, Plateau, Niger, Benue, Taraba and Katsina, issued similar shutdown orders amid fears that armed groups are widening their targets.

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