Suspected terrorists snatched six women — three of them nursing mothers — from a farm in Mussa, Askira/Uba LGA, Borno State on Sunday, residents told THE WHISTLER. The abductions came a day before gunmen reportedly attacked a secondary school in nearby Lassa and took an unknown number of students.
According to residents, the women were kidnapped while working about one kilometre from Mussa — the same community where 42 pupils were taken from a primary and junior secondary school 47 days ago.
“They took six women. Three of them are nursing mothers. They are from our community. They kidnapped them on the farm,” a resident said.
The latest incident came barely 24 hours before the reported attack on Government Day Secondary School, Lassa, on Monday. Residents said armed men stormed the school during examinations, killed at least one teacher and took away an unconfirmed number of students.
“This morning, they interrupted the examination. We cannot verify the number of students they took. They also killed teachers,” a resident said.
Lassa sits near the Adamawa State border and is close to Mussa. One resident said attackers arrived on motorcycles on market day and trapped teachers and students inside a classroom before carrying some away.
“The teachers and students were trapped in the classroom. There was no way to escape or jump through the windows. They attacked them and took some of them away,” the resident said.
The back-to-back strikes have scared farmers and shut down fields.
“We depend on farming for our livelihood. We cultivate crops and rear cattle and sheep. The first time they came, they took our cattle. The second time, they abducted our children. Now, they have taken women from farms barely one kilometre from the community.
“We are afraid to go to our farms. If we stop farming because of insecurity, hunger will follow,” another resident lamented.
Residents have called on federal and state governments and the international community to act.
“We are calling on both local and international media to help draw attention to what is happening here. The situation is becoming increasingly dangerous,” a resident said.
Military aircraft were later seen circling overhead.
“We have been seeing Air Force planes circling overhead for nearly an hour. They are patrolling the area, apparently searching for the kidnappers,” a resident said.
Parents of the 42 pupils abducted nearly seven weeks ago said they have had no update. “One government official told us that work is ongoing and asked us not to grant interviews because it could create misunderstandings with the attackers,” a parent said. Two farmers taken earlier were reportedly released after a ransom was paid.
