Gunmen kidnapped more than 70 high school students in northwest Nigeria on Wednesday, police said, the latest kidnapping in a long series targeting schools.
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The attackers stormed the high school near Maradun in Zamfara state in the morning and abducted 73 students, the state police spokesman said in a statement.
"A large number of armed bandits"
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The kidnapping took place after the school was invaded by a large number of armed bandits,
" spokesman Mohammed Shehu said, adding that the police were working with the army to try to free the students.
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States in the north and center of the country have long been plagued by serious security unrest, with criminal groups carrying out mass attacks, looting and kidnappings in remote rural areas.
But incidents have intensified in recent months, sparking sharp criticism against authorities unable to restore order.
Since the beginning of the year, these groups have increased kidnappings in schools and other educational establishments throughout the region, to demand ransoms from the relatives of the victims.
Nearly 1,000 students were kidnapped in a few months.
Dozens still detained
Many were released after spending several weeks or months in captivity, but dozens of students are still being held by their captors.
In Zamfara, 18 students kidnapped in mid-August from an agricultural college were released last week.
Around 100 children abducted in May from an Islamic seminary in Niger State and 32 others, abducted in July from a Baptist school in Kaduna State, have also been released in recent days. President Muhammadu Buhari is under pressure due to growing insecurity despite the deployment of the army in areas where criminal gangs have established camps.