The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has denounced the recent attack on a boarding school in the northern Nigerian state of Katsina and the abduction of hundreds of boys.
A group of unidentified armed militants attacked the Kankara Government Science Secondary School for boys on Friday, shooting dead the guards and kidnapping up to 400 pupils, half of the school's students who had attended the school premises that day. The rest escaped kidnapping by hiding in the bushes.
"UNICEF condemns in the strongest possible terms this brutal attack and calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all children and their return to their families," the statement published late on Sunday read.
The agency expressed concern over similar attacks violating children's rights, which are still widespread across the Western African nation.
The statement noted that UNICEF had acknowledged the state's efforts to assist the safe return of the rescued children to their families.
On Saturday, the national security forces said they had found the perpetrators' hideout. A probe is underway. (/Sputnik)
( With inputs from ANI )
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