It was gathered that the gunmen broke into the school premises on Thursday afternoon in police mufti.

However, details of the incident are still sketchy but according to Daily Trust, there are reports that a security operative was shot dead during the operation.

“They pointed a gun at the school guards and asked them for the girls’ hostels.

“Before you know what was happening the bandits invaded the school and started abducting female students,” a source confided.

Recall that schoolgirls were kidnapped from the school last Friday after an attack by unknown gunmen.

Reacting to this development, President Muhammadu Buhari expressed “overwhelming joy” as he celebrate their arrival.

Buhari’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday morning.

“I join the families and people of Zamfara State in welcoming and celebrating the release of these traumatized female students,” Buhari said.

However, while celebrating the release of the students, the President called for greater vigilance by the people so that human intelligence could be collected early enough to nip the bandits’ plans in the bud.

He warned the time has come to reverse, completely, the grim and heartbreaking incidents of kidnapping.

“Ransom payments will continue to prosper kidnapping,” he warned, while urging the Police and the Military to go after these kidnappers and bring them to justice.

But, the agency however expressed that it would be more exciting if the abducted schoolgirls of Girls’ Secondary School Jangebe in Zamfara State are released faster and safer too.

Recall that the the abducted students and teachers of Government Science College, Kagara, in Rafi Local Government Area of Niger State were released on Saturday morning, but it was uncertain if the ransom was paid for their release or not.

This was contained in a statement on Saturday by the Unicef Nigeria Representative, Peter Hawkins.

Commenting on the attack, the UN agency said that children do not deserve such violent attacks, at least not in their schools where they should feel safer.

Hawkins said: “I am relieved to receive the long-awaited news of the release of 27 students of the Government Science College in Kagara abducted from their school over a week ago and I look forward to their safe return to their families.

“As the freed students return to their families, I commiserate with the family of their fallen school mate, Benjamin Habila, who was shot dead during the overnight attack on the school. My thoughts and prayers are with the family of Benjamin, who has suffered a huge loss.

“The Kagara school attack – like that of Government Girls’ Secondary School Jangebe in Zamfara State Friday, and others before it shouldn’t have happened in the first place because children shouldn’t be the target of attacks, least of all in a place they ought to feel safe – a school.

“Attacks on educational facilities are a grave violation of children’s rights. Children should never be the target of the attack, and yet, far too often in Nigeria, they are precisely that, victims of attacks on their schools.

“Such attacks not only negate the right of children to an education, but they also make children fearful of going to school, and parents afraid to send their children to school. Schools must be safe places to study and develop, and learning should not become a perilous endeavour.”

“As we welcome the news of the release of the abducted Kagara students, I urge the government to expedite action on the release and safe return of the kidnapped students of Government Girls Secondary School Jangebe, and all abducted school children yet to be released.”

This reaction follows the abduction of 317 schoolgirls from Government Girls Secondary School, Jangebe in the Talata-Mafara Local Government Area of Zamfara State.

This attack comes in less than two weeks after gunmen kidnapped dozens of students and workers of Government Science College in Kagara, Rafi Local Government of Niger State, and are yet to be released.

Amnesty International via a series of tweets on Friday, lamented that attacks on schools and abductions of girls are war crimes and it undermines the right to education.

The tweets read: “The abduction of girls at Government Secondary School, Jangebe is a serious violation of international humanitarian law, and it undermines the right to education for thousands of children in northern Nigeria.

“The girls abducted are in 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.”

Lawan gave his remark in a statement by his media aide, Ola Awoniyi, in Abuja.

According to the Statement, the Senate President expressed sadness and outrage that the incident happened while efforts were still being made to rescue those abducted just over a week ago at another secondary school in Kagara, Niger State.

He, however stated that the recurrent attacks on schools and other acts of banditry called for intense soul searching on how the nation arrived at this sorry path and how to cage the monster of violent crimes in Nigeria.

Lawan also expressed his sympathy for the abducted schoolgirls and urged the authorities at all levels to work together to ensure their immediate rescue.