88 More Students Reported Missing After Terrorists' Attack on Niger Catholic School

• Catholic authorities in Niger state have said the number of pupils, students and teachers abducted from St. Mary’s Catholic Primary and Secondary Schools in Papiri has risen to 315
• In a statement on Saturday, November 22, Catholic authorities stated that their latest findings showed that eighty-eight (88) additional students were abducted after they attempted to escape during the attack
• Terrorists carried out the kidnappings on Friday, November 21, the latest in a spate of mass abductions and attacks that have drawn the attention of the Donald Trump administration in the United States

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Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering metro.

Minna, Niger state - The Catholic Diocese of Kontagora has declared 88 more students missing in the attack on St Mary Secondary School, Papiri, Agwara local government area (LGA) of Niger state.

As reported by Daily Trust, Most. Rev. Bulus Dauwa Yohanna of the Catholic Bishop of Kontagora Diocese gave the update on Saturday morning, November 22.

'Abducted Niger pupils now 303'

Yohanna disclosed that 303 students are now missing.

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Yohanna, who spoke through his media aide, Daniel Atori, noted that the increase came after a verification exercise and final census, The Punch said.

He had earlier said 215 students could not be accounted for after the attack, adding that four female and eight male teachers were kidnapped during the raid.

He said in his new update on Saturday, November 22:

“The total number of victims abducted from St Mary’s Catholic Primary and Secondary Schools, Papiri, in Agwara Local Government Area is now 303 students and 12 teachers.

“After leaving the school, we made calls and conducted a verification exercise to confirm the status of those we thought had escaped. We discovered that 88 more students had been captured while attempting to flee. This came to light when parents, whose children we believed were safe, inquired about them. It prompted us to carry out a full census, which revealed the higher number.

“At present, 303 students, both male and female, and 12 teachers, four female and eight male, remain abducted, bringing the total number of victims to 315."

Papiri town, where the incident happened, is about 70 kilometres from Babana axis, where Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), an al-Qaeda affiliate in the Sahel, announced its presence in July.

The abduction happened less than a week after a similar abduction of schoolgirls in Kebbi state.

Read more on Nigeria's security challenges:

• Insecurity: Nigerian police take new action in Kano border
• Top 10 causes of insecurity in Nigeria and solutions to them
• Senate urges President Tinubu to approve 100,000 military recruitment to confront insecurity

Sani bemoans lingering terrorism menace

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that Shehu Sani, a former senator from Kaduna, blamed corruption for Nigeria's years-long battle with terrorism and banditry.

Sani stated that terrorists are “afraid” of attacking targets in neighbouring countries like Niger, Chad, and Cameroon, but the same cannot be said of Nigeria.

According to the ex-federal lawmaker, Nigeria’s defence and security apparatuses, in the past, did not dedicate themselves to the service.

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