May 15, (THEWILL) — Residents of Mussa community in Askira-Uba Local Government Area of Borno State were thrown into panic on Friday morning after suspected Boko Haram/ISWAP insurgents invaded a school in the area, leaving many pupils reportedly missing.
THEWILL gathered that the attackers stormed Mussa Primary and Junior Secondary School in the early hours of Friday, barely minutes after troops on patrol reportedly left the community.
The remote Mussa village, which shares a boundary with the dreaded Sambisa Forest, has remained vulnerable to insurgent attacks because of its proximity to known terrorist hideouts.
Sources within the community disclosed that the insurgents, who rode into the village on motorcycles, invaded the school premises while pupils were already within the area, forcing many of them to flee into nearby bushes in confusion and fear.
Although the exact number of those abducted could not be immediately confirmed as of press time, residents said several pupils were still unaccounted for following the attack.
The Deputy Speaker of the Borno State House of Assembly, Hon. Abdullahi Askira, who hails from Askira-Uba Local Government Area, confirmed the invasion when contacted on Friday.
“Yes, I can confirm to you that some suspected terrorists riding on motorcycles invaded primary and junior secondary schools in Mussa village this morning,” Askira said.
He noted that while many students managed to escape into the surrounding bushes during the attack, authorities were still trying to determine the exact number of those abducted or missing.
The lawmaker expressed concern that the attackers appeared to have monitored troop movements before carrying out the operation.
“It is also disheartening that the incident took place barely a few minutes after troops on patrol left the community; this signifies that the insurgents or the attackers were spying on the movement of troops before they struck,” he added.
As of the time of filing this report, security personnel and local vigilante groups were said to be combing nearby bushes in search of fleeing students and possible traces of the attackers.
Efforts to obtain official reaction from the Nigeria Police Force through the Borno State Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Kenneth Daso, were unsuccessful, as calls and messages sent to him were not responded to before press time.
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