Boko Haram attacks College of Agriculture in Yobe, over 30 students killed

Just three days before Nigeria is to celebrate its 53rd Independence Day, the country had to witness a tragic massacre as gunmen numbering over 200 stormed the College of Agriculture in Yobe state, killing over 30 students as they slept in dormitories.

The gunmen are suspected to belong to the Islamist militant group Boko Haram which means ‘Western education is a sin’. The militants are notorious for staging numerous attacks across Nigeria, especially on schools and have intensified attacks on civilians in recent weeks in revenge for a military offensive against its insurgency.

They are fighting to topple the government in Nigeria and establish an Islamic state.

The attack on the College of Agriculture occurred yesterday when gunmen reportedly 200 in number raided the college and started firing at sleeping students, killing over 30 and leaving over 100 unaccounted for, local media reports said.


They also destroyed classrooms, hostels, administrative blocks, staff quarters and cars belonging to the college.

"They came with guns around 1 a.m. (2400 GMT) and went directly to the male hostel and opened fire on them ... The college is in the bush so the other students were running around helplessly as guns went off and some of them were shot down," said Ahmed Gujunba, a taxi driver who lives by the college.

The death toll could rise as the authorities in Yobe State said that they were still recovering bodies from the bush.

Area Military spokesman Lazarus Eli confirmed the incident and said that security forces have been deployed to the school to protect surviving students until they can all leave the campus. Eli said the attack was carried out by “Boko Haram terrorists who went into the school and opened fire on students while they were sleeping"