Gunmen attack Nigeria girls' school

Gunmen attacked a government girls’ boarding school in Kebbi State in northwest Nigeria before dawn, killing the vice principal and abducting 25 female students, police said. The assailants, armed with rifles and reported to have used coordinated tactics, stormed Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School in Maga town after an initial gunfight with the on-site security detail. Vice Principal Hassan Yakubu Makuku was shot dead while resisting the attackers; another staff member was wounded.

Witnesses and survivors described chaotic scenes as gunshots and shouting woke sleeping students. The attackers reportedly arrived on motorcycles, overpowered the small security team at the gate and forced their way into dormitories, rounding up girls as they slept. Some students escaped in the confusion and alerted neighbouring villagers. Police said the early estimate of 25 kidnapped students will be confirmed after a full headcount and notifications to families.

Security forces launched a multi-pronged search and rescue. Police tactical units, soldiers and local vigilante groups were deployed to comb likely escape routes and surrounding bushland, while authorities said the gunmen probably split into smaller groups to evade pursuit. Officials requested helicopter surveillance, though it was not confirmed whether air support had been deployed. The search extended into dense forest known to shelter criminal gangs, complicating efforts to locate the abducted girls.

The assault echoes a persistent pattern of mass kidnappings in northwest Nigeria, where armed criminal gangs exploit weak policing, poverty and difficult terrain to abduct students—typically to demand ransom or gain leverage. Such attacks have prompted long-term school closures in rural areas and left communities fearful. The 2014 abduction of 270 schoolgirls in Chibok by Boko Haram is the most notorious case, and while many abductees later escaped or were released, some remain missing. Rights groups warn that without stronger protections for schools and deeper reforms to address rural insecurity, further abductions are likely.

National officials condemned the attack and pledged intensified security operations and support for victims’ families. Local relatives spent the day outside the school awaiting news, pleading for a swift and safe rescue. Authorities continued to coordinate ground searches and follow leads, saying the investigation would examine how the attackers breached security and whether the raid was linked to larger criminal networks operating across the region.