Edino Chubiyo Cornelius 
BORNO, Nigeria – Suspected Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) fighters stormed a secondary school in Borno State on Monday and abducted several students who were sitting for the National Examinations Council (NECO) examination, authorities said.
The attackers invaded Government Day Secondary School in Lassa, a community in Askira/Uba Local Government Area, at about 9 a.m., triggering panic among students, teachers and residents.
Witnesses said the gunmen fired repeatedly into the air as candidates sat for their examination, forcing students and staff to flee for safety.
A teacher was reportedly killed during the attack, while another sustained injury, although security authorities said they were still verifying casualty figures.
The exact number of students abducted remains unclear as officials continue efforts to determine how many candidates are missing following the assault.
Confirming the incident, the spokesperson for the Borno State Police Command, ASP Nahum Daso, said security agencies had launched a coordinated rescue operation to locate the victims and apprehend the attackers.
According to him, several students remain unaccounted for after the raid.
“We are still assessing the situation, and some students are yet to be accounted for,” Daso said.
He added that the police had yet to confirm reports of fatalities linked to the attack.
Daso said a joint operation involving the police, the military, the Civilian Joint Task Force and security personnel from the Askira/Uba Area Command had commenced immediately after the incident.
Security forces are currently combing nearby forests and surrounding communities in search of the abducted students and the suspected insurgents.
The attack has renewed concerns about the safety of schools in Nigeria’s North-East, where educational institutions have repeatedly been targeted by insurgent groups over the past decade.
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