The Borno State Government has confirmed receiving a 15-second proof-of-life video showing 36 students abducted from Government Day Secondary School in Lassa, Askira/Uba Local Government Area. The confirmation came on Saturday during the Borno State Education Summit in Maiduguri, where the Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Abba Wakilbe, played the footage as part of a slide presentation before participants.
The students were kidnapped on June 29 when suspected Boko Haram terrorists attacked the school around 9 am while candidates were writing the National Examinations Council examinations. According to police reports, the gunmen disguised themselves as retailers taking advantage of the community's market day, sneaked into the town with concealed weapons, and began shooting sporadically. Two teachers were killed during the attack.
Security operatives including the Army, Police, and Civilian Joint Task Force have since rescued ten victims through a coordinated search and rescue operation involving air support. However, 36 students comprising 25 girls and 11 boys remain in captivity along with one teacher. The video reportedly shows the abducted students seated on the ground, some still wearing their school uniforms, while two armed terrorists stood behind them holding a flag with Arabic inscriptions. Officials have declined to release the footage to the public.
The summit, themed Strengthening Safe, Inclusive and Gender-Responsive Education: Building Back Better, was organised in partnership with the Malala Fund. Speaking at the event, Commissioner Wakilbe assured participants that the state government was working tirelessly to secure the safe return of all captives. He noted that this abduction follows a similar incident in Mussa community where 42 pupils were taken, and warned that continued attacks on schools could reverse the progress made in rebuilding education in the state.
The situation has heightened tensions in Lassa, with angry youths previously chasing away a government delegation that visited to sympathise with families, chanting demands for action rather than words. Parents have registered 37 names as missing, and many have not slept since the attack, desperately waiting for news of their children. The government continues to work with security agencies to intensify efforts toward rescuing those still held captive.
Abuja Network News
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