Security operatives comprising the Nigerian Army, the Police, and members of the Civilian Joint Task Force, CJTF, have rescued seven victims abducted during Monday’s terrorist attack on Government Day Secondary School, Lassa, in Askira/Uba Local Government Area of Borno State.
The victims were among an unspecified number of students writing the National Examinations Council, NECO, examination and other civilians who were whisked away when suspected Islamic State West Africa Province, ISWAP, terrorists invaded the school.
The attackers, who reportedly arrived on motorcycles, opened fire indiscriminately, causing panic before abducting students and women selling food and other items within the school premises.
Confirming the development, the Borno State Commissioner for Information and Internal Security, Usman Tar, said seven of the abducted persons had so far been rescued, while efforts were ongoing to secure the release of the remaining victims.
“So far, seven of them have been rescued. We cannot confirm their gender yet. Assessment is still ongoing,” Tar told Punch.
He added that the exact number of students and other victims still in captivity had yet to be determined.
“We have sent a delegation to the community to assess the situation and reassure residents while efforts continue to rescue the remaining abductees,” the commissioner said.
Earlier, the spokesperson for the Borno State Police Command, ASP Nahum Daso, confirmed that security operatives engaged the attackers during the assault, preventing what could have been a larger-scale abduction.
“Around 9 a.m., ISWAP attacked Government Day Secondary School, Lassa. They shot sporadically, and an unspecified number of students were abducted,” Daso said.
The attack is the latest in a series of assaults targeting schools and communities in Nigeria’s North-East, where insurgent groups have continued to pose a security threat despite ongoing military operations.
Security agencies have intensified search-and-rescue operations in the surrounding bush to locate and free the remaining abductees.