Amnesty International has said that the abduction of 27 students and three staff of Government Science College, Kagara, Niger State, has undermined the right to education.

In a statement on Wednesday by its Nigeria Director, Dr. Osai Ojigho, the global human rights body demand the rescue of the pupils and staff of the school, urging President Muhammadu Buhari to arrest and prosecute the bandits responsible.

Ojigbo noted that the kidnap of the students underlined the attack on western education, particularly in northern Nigeria, adding the attack was a serious violation of international humanitarian law.

She asserted that the kidnap can severely reduce the availability of and access to education for many children in northern Nigeria, where violent attacks are escalating.

The statement reads: “We condemn this appalling attack, which is the latest in a string of attacks on schools in northern Nigeria. Attacks on schools and abductions of children are war crimes. Those responsible for the kidnapping must be brought to justice for these and other human rights abuses.

“That this is coming only about three months after a similar incident at a school in Kankara, Katsina state, shows that authorities are not doing enough to protect lives. The children abducted are at serious risk of being harmed. Nigerian authorities must take all measures to return them to safety, along with all children currently under the custody of armed groups.”

“Education is under attack in northern Nigeria. Schools should be places of safety, and no child should have to choose between their education and their life. Other children have had to abandon their education after being displaced by frequent violent attacks on their communities, and many teachers have been forced to flee to other states. The Nigerian authorities must act immediately to prevent attacks on schools, to protect children’s lives and their right to education.

“The protection of children’s lives is paramount, and the Nigerian government must ensure that armed groups do not further threaten the country’s educational sector on a rampage across northern Nigeria