The notorious terrorist group, Boko Haram, yesterday claimed it was behind the abduction of hundreds of students in northwestern Nigeria, in what appears to be a major expansion of the jihadist group’s activities into new areas.
At least 333 students are still missing since the attack late Friday on the all-boys Government Science Secondary School in Katsina State — hundreds of kilometres from Boko Haram’s stronghold in northeastern Nigeria.
In a 4:30 audio first published by HumAngle, the leader of Boko Haram, Abubakar Shekau, said his group abducted the schoolboys because Western education is against the tenets of Islam.
“What happened in Katsina was done to promote Islam and discourage un-Islamic practices as Western education is not the type of education permitted by Allah and his Holy Prophet.
“They are also not teaching what Allah and his Holy Prophet commanded. They are rather destroying Islam. It may be subtly, but Allah the Lord of the Skies and Earths knows whatever is hidden. May Allah promotes Islam, may we die as Muslims.”
“In a nutshell, we are behind what happened in Katsina,” he said.
The terrorists’ leader ended the message by saying: “The speaker is Abubakar Shekau, leader of Jama’atu Ahlussunna Lid-Da’awati wal Jihad.”
Mr Shekau neither gave details of the attack nor number of the abducted schoolboys nor mentioned the issue of negotiation with the government.
“I am Abubakar Shekau and our brothers are behind the kidnapping in Katsina,” the leader of Boko Haram said in a voice message.
Reports confirmed that more than 100 gunmen on motorcycles stormed the rural school north of Kankara town, forcing students to flee and hide in the surrounding bush.
The weekend attack was initially blamed on armed groups locally known as “bandits”, who are active in the unstable region where kidnappings for ransom are common.
The army has said it has located the hideout of the “bandits”, and that a military operation was underway.
The kidnappings occurred in the home state of President Muhammadu Buhari, who condemned the attack and ordered security stepped up in schools. In Katsina, all schools were closed shortly after the incident.
Tuesday’s claim of responsibility marks a major turning point in the advance of jihadist groups in northwest Nigeria.
Boko Haram, and a splinter group, the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP), are waging an insurgency in the northeast and are thought to have only a minor presence in the northwest.
But concerns have grown of jihadist inroads into the region, especially after fighters claiming to be in the northwest released a propaganda video pledging allegiance to Abubakar Shekau earlier this year.
Buhari has made the fight against Boko Haram a priority of his administration, but the security situation in the country and especially in the north, has deteriorated since his 2015 election.
Meanwhile, a student (name withheld) of the attacked Government Secondary School, Kankara in Katsina State who escaped from the bandits’ hideouts, said two of the students have been killed.
A parent of a missing student, Hajiya Faiza Hamza Kankara, who spoke to Vanguard said the survivor student stated this while giving an account of his ordeal in the hands of the captors.
The grieving parent said the student told them that the bandits feed them with leaves and beat them like cattle.
She also said the student told them that students still missing stands at over 500 saying whoever said the number of missing children is 10, is a liar.
According to her, “my son, Usman Lawal Tahir is in SS2 class. He is still missing.
“One of the students who returned yesterday (Sunday night) said they were 520 that included two that were killed and him who escaped.
“So whoever says the missing children were 10 lied.
“Today (Monday), another child just returned and he is been interviewed in the principal’s office. So we are waiting to hear what is the situation with the missing children over there. Although, when he returned, one of the security personnel who brought him back said 15 more are on their way before the dusk.
“The children said they were fed with leaves and beaten like cattle.
“We appeal to President Buhari and Governor Masari to come to our aid and rescue our wards. We cannot sleep and cannot eat,” the grieving parent said.
Reacting to the latest development on the abduction of the schoolboys, the Coalition of Northern Groups, CNG, gave President Muhammadu Buhari an ultimatum after which it will stage a walk to Daura should the President fail to rescue the students.
The Coalition had launched a hashtag #BringBackOurBoys# aka #BBOB#.
According to the coalition who didn’t unveil a planned day for the walk, said they would mobilise youths from Jigawa, Kano and Katsina in buses to Daura, the hometown of the President.
Follow the Neptune Prime channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Va74ZvU2v1IqKByXoX3d
Do you have breaking news, interview request, opinion, suggestion, or want your event covered? Email us at neptuneprime2233@gmail.com
