by CHRYSTAL STASICKY Media Editor
A suicide bomber disguised himself as a student in northeast Nigeria and killed 47 students, making the attack one of the worst against schools within a Western curriculum.
The disguised bomber walked into the all-boys school in Potiskum on Monday morning. All the boys were gathering for the morning assembly right before classes were going to begin when the explosion went off near the principal’s office.
The students witnessed movie-like happenings. Student Adamu Abdullahi said one of his pupils was on top of him after the explosion, and he automatically knew that his peer was dead. Abdullahi saw people flung in all directions and knocked off their feet before he went down himself.
Abdullahi ran home as quickly as he could, allowing his father to see his white school uniform stained with human blood and chunks of flesh.
Dead and injured students and teachers were taken to Potiskum General Hospital.
“It is horrible to think that young adults or children got to be a part of such a thing. It is disgusting that someone would kill themselves and take the lives of students who did not even get to live their lives yet with them. I honestly hope that whoever has done this is brought to justice so no more lives are lost,” said junior Amber Lee.
It is suspected that the suicide bomber was a part of Boko Harem, an Islamist group that wants to create a hardline state in northern Nigeria. This is especially sad because the attack came a day after a video was released in which leader Abubakar Shekau rejected Nigerian government claims of a ceasefire and peace talks. The northern community believes the attack was to prove that the government was wrong and Boko Harem will not stop.
This is not the first attack that occurred against an educational institution. In July of 2013, Boko Haram stormed dormitories in a gun and bomb attack on a government boarding school in Mamudo, killing 42 students. Fighters also killed at least 40 students in February when they threw explosives into the dormitory of another government boarding school in Buni Yadi.
The most high-profile attack that they performed took place in April. The group kidnapped 276 girls from the town of Chibok in Borno state. Two hundred nineteen girls are still missing.
The government’s ability to control the region is being questioned because of these school bombings and other violent actions that Boko Harem has been performing.
“I think that citizens should be questioning the government at this point. Attacks have been taking place for some period of time now and almost nothing has been done. This group needs to be stopped. The government has to do something soon before they kill more people and attack more schools,” said freshman Jonathon Petrow.
Another suicide bombing killed at least 15 individuals at a Shiite religious ceremony last Monday.
Boko Harem has taken over at least two dozen towns and villages in the past few months. All the attacks that happened and places that have been taken over are located in northern Nigeria because it is the target place for the state Boko Harem wants.
How do you feel about the government’s failure to respond? What should the government do to stop the attacks?
Bình luận