Boko Haram asserted responsibility on Tuesday for laying siege to a secondary school in northwest Nigeria and abducting more than 300 boys, marking a striking leap from the extremist group’s usual area of operation.
Hundreds of gunmen on motorbikes surrounded the boarding school in Katsina state Friday night and opened fire on police, witnesses said, before rounding up students and dragging them into the woods.
Abubakar Shekau, the group’s leader, said in an audio message released in the early hours of the morning that fighters stormed the school to discourage “Western education,” according to Nigerian media outlets and researchers who reviewed the recording.
Horrifying news out of Nigeria: Boko Haram has asserted responsibility for kidnapping 300+ schoolboys — far from where fighters normally strike.
“This is a huge announcement — an audacious demonstration of capacity.”https://t.co/FtJYbSlj0c
— Danielle Paquette (@DPAQreport) December 15, 2020