The Katsina State Government has ordered the immediate closure of all public schools amid rising insecurity across the region, prompting thousands of boarding students to return home on Friday, November 21. The directive, issued by the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, urged parents, caregivers, teachers and the wider public to comply while authorities monitor the situation to ensure the safety of students and staff. Although an official written statement had not yet been released, the Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Yusuf Jibia, confirmed to DW Hausa that the shutdown was a precaution following recent attacks in neighbouring states. He noted that most schools had already completed first-term academic activities. Only examinations remain for our students, Jibia said, stressing that the state had to act swiftly to prevent possible attacks. Katsina, which borders Kebbi State, has a troubling history of school abductions. Earlier this week in Kebbi, gunmen kidnapped 26 students from Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School, Maga. Katsina has itself witnessed several mass abductions, most notably the December 2020 Kankara kidnapping, when more than 300 boys were taken from Government Science Secondary School. They were released after several days, prompting a statewide shutdown of boarding schools. Other incidents include the August 2021 abduction of ten students and a teacher in Faskari, and the January 2024 kidnapping of two female students from Al-Qalam University. The latest closure comes as northern Nigeria faces a renewed wave of attacks. In Niger State on Friday, November 21, armed men stormed St. Marys Primary and Secondary School in Papiri, kidnapping an unspecified number of students. Witnesses reported that over 60 motorcycles were used and that the attackers shot the schools gatekeeper, leaving him seriously injured. The Niger kidnapping follows other violent incidents this week. In Kwara State, bandits abducted at least 30 worshippers from a Christ Apostolic Church parish in Eruku, killing three people. The abductors have reportedly demanded 100 million per victim. In Kebbi State, 26 schoolgirls were seized in Mondays attack in Maga. Meanwhile, police in Nasarawa State dismissed claims circulating online that two pupils were abducted from St. Peters Academy in Rukubi, calling the report false and not reflective of the true state of affairs. The escalating security crisis has drawn urgent federal attention. President Bola Tinubu has directed the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, to relocate to Kebbi to lead rescue efforts, and he has postponed planned trips to Johannesburg and Angola. With multiple states experiencing simultaneous attacks, fear has deepened across northern Nigeria, and calls for coordinated, decisive action are becoming more urgent.
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