The military has deployed air assets, including combat helicopters, fighter jets to support the rescue operation of the abducted students of Governmen
The military has deployed air assets, including combat helicopters, fighter jets to support the rescue operation of the abducted students of Government Science Secondary School, Kankara, Katsina by gunmen.
According to Punch, a senior officer of the Nigeria Air Force confirmed that the NAF was involved in the ongoing search for the missing pupils and that fighter jets have been combing the Zango/Paula forest in search of the missing students.
Gunmen suspected to be bandits on Friday night, invaded the school, a male only boarding school, and abducted an unspecified number of pupils. Residents said the gunmen invaded the school around 10:15pm and shot at one of the policemen manning the main gate.
The policeman, who was reportedly wounded in the leg, is said to be receiving treatment in hospital.
It was learnt that the bandits then proceeded to the staff quarters where they abducted the wife of a staff member before storming the pupils’ hostel where they gathered and abducted an unspecified number of pupils.
Military sources disclosed that troops of the Nigerian Army later arrived at the school to confront the bandits following which they (the bandits) left with some of the pupils.
Some of the pupils were also said to have escaped from the school during the gun duel between the troops and the gunmen.
Meanwhile, the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, has ordered the deployment of additional operational and investigative assets to support the ongoing search and rescue operations in Kankara and its environs.
But The Police Force spokesperson, DCP Frank Mba, said in a statement titled, ‘Kankara GSS attack: IGP deploys additional rescue assets’, that the deployment, which includes personnel from the Police Tactical Squads and crack detectives from the Force Intelligence Bureau, would provide investigative support for the state police command.
“Investigations so far revealed one of the attackers was killed and a policeman injured during the attack,” he added.
