KANO, Nigeria (AFP) — A suspected Boko Haram suicide bomber disguised in school uniform killed 47 students in north-east Nigeria yesterday in one of the worst attacks against schools teaching 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 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.
Students at the Government Comprehensive Senior Science Secondary School were waiting to hear the principal’s daily address when the explosion happened at 7:50 am (0650 GMT).
Several witnesses described the blast as “thunderous” and the bloody aftermath as a scene 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 state 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.
Student Adamu Abdullahi said those at the centre 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 told AFP.
“When my father saw me he was terrified. I didn’t realise 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 100 metres (yards) away.
Boko Haram, which wants to create a hard-line Islamic state in northern Nigeria, has previously carried out deadly attacks on schools teaching a curriculum it deems to be Western.
Jonathan vowed that the country would “overcome the current security challenges imposed by domestic terrorists and their foreign allies”.