At least 333 pupils from the all-boys Government Science Secondary School near rural Kankara town in Katsina state are still missing.
"Our brothers are behind the kidnapping in Katsina," said a voice message by a man claiming to be Abubakar Shekau, the leader of Boko Haram.
While many Boko Haram attacks take place in and around the group's stronghold in north-eastern Nigeria, this move shows an expansion of attacks to the other side of the country, hundreds of kilometres away.
More than 100 gunmen on motorcycles attacked the school, and many fled but a number were recaptured, split into groups and spirited away, according to what residents told AFP newswire.
One of the students who escaped said pupils taken by the gunmen were split into groups.
"After they took us away we stopped inside the bus where they made the older students take a headcount. We counted 520," said student Osama Aminu Maale, 18, speaking from his parents’ house.
"One of the gunmen hit me repeatedly when I failed to keep up with the rest of the group due to my failing health before he let me trail behind, giving me the chance to escape," he said, adding that four others managed to flee with him.
Mercenaries to bolster security
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari condemned the attack and ordered reinforced security in schools in the area. In Katsina state, all schools were closed.
Buhari has made tackling Boko Haram a key part of his administration, but the security situation has worsened since 2015.
Hundreds of students allegedly missing from a school in Katsina and all we get is an “Our prayers are with the families of the students” statement from General #Buhari?
— Reno Omokri (@renoomokri) December 12, 2020
All we want is for those precious boys to be rescued!#BringBackOurBoys#BringBackOurBoys#BringBackOurBoys
Last month, after 78 farmers were killed in north-eastern Borno state, both Borno South Senator Mohamed Ali Ndume and Borno Governor Babagana Umara Zulum called for the engagement of South African mercenaries to rout out the insurgents.
“His appeal was equally supported by colleagues from the northwest zone of Yobe, Adamawa, Taraba, Gombe and Bauchi state,” RFI Hausa service Editor Bashir Ibrahim Idriss told the Africa Calling podcast.
“This demand has gained ground, after looking at the number of people being killed,” he added.
South African mercenaries were used by then-President Goodluck Johnathan before the 2015 elections in order to kick Boko Haram out of the north.
The hashtag #BringBackOurBoys has been trending across social media, reminiscent of Boko Haram's abduction of 276 girls in north-eastern Chibok.
More than 36,000 people have been killed in Nigeria since 2009 and the rise of Boko Haram.
