A suspected Boko Haram suicide bomber disguised in school uniform killed 47 students in northeast Nigeria on Monday, prompting US and UN condemnation of one of the worst attacks against schools with a so-called Western curriculum.
The explosion ripped through an all-boys school in Potiskum just as students gathered for morning assembly before classes began, causing panic and chaos.
The massacre, described by Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan as a “dastardly attack,” came just a day after the release of a new Boko Haram video in which the Islamist group’s leader, Abubakar Shekau, again rejected Nigerian government claims of a ceasefire and peace talks.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on Nigerian authorities to bring the perpetrators of the school attack to justice.
The UN leader “is outraged by the frequency and brutality of attacks against educational institutions in the north of the country,” his spokesman said.
US Department of State spokeswoman Jen Psaki echoed the call for the perpetrators to be brought to justice and condemned “the horrific attack” by “those bent on fomenting violence, extremism and insecurity.”
Students at the Government Comprehensive Senior Science Secondary School were waiting to hear the principal’s daily address when the explosion happened at 7:50am.
Several witnesses said the blast was “thunderous” and described a bloody aftermath of abandoned footwear, charred school books, bags and body parts.
“There was an explosion detonated by a suicide bomber. We have 47 dead and 79 injured,” national police spokesman Emmanuel Ojukwu said, adding that Boko Haram was believed to be responsible.
Ojukwu also confirmed local media reports that the bomber was disguised as a student at the school, which has more than 1,000 pupils aged 15 to 20.
Yobe Governor Ibrahim Gaidam ordered the immediate closure of all public schools in the Potiskum area and slammed the government in Abuja for failing to tackle the insurgency.
“Urgent action must be taken right now to restore a fast-waning public confidence by doing whatever it takes to stop the escalating violence,” he said in a statement.
Jonathan, who was expected to declare his bid for re-election yesterday, promised those affected that his government would find the culprits, “no matter how long it takes.”
Student Adamu Abdullahi said pupils at the center of the blast near the principal’s office were flung in all directions and others were knocked off their feet.
“I found myself under the weight of another student, who fell over me. I’m certain he was dead. I was dazed and disorientated for a moment,” he said.
“When I realized what had happened, I managed to push the body on top of me and started running like everyone else. It was confusion all over. Everybody was hysterical,” he said.
“I saw many people on the ground. Human flesh and blood were splattered all over the place... I ran out of the school and went home,” he said. “When my father saw me he was terrified. I didn’t realize my white school uniform was stained with human blood and bits of flesh.”
The dead and injured were taken to the Potiskum General Hospital, just 100m away from the school.
Boko Haram, which wants to create a hardline Muslim state in northern Nigeria, has previously carried out deadly attacks on schools teaching a curriculum it deems to be Western.
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