ABUJA, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Nigerian police said on Saturday that rescue operations were underway after gunmen killed a school official and abducted several students and a principal in coordinated attacks on schools in the country's southwestern state of Oyo.
Ayanlade Olayinka, police spokesperson in Oyo State, told Xinhua that the attackers, riding on motorcycles, stormed two primary schools and a secondary school in Oriire Local Government Area on Friday.
According to Olayinka, the gunmen used some vehicles parked within the school premises to transport the victims into a nearby forest.
No student was killed in the attacks, he said, adding that an assistant headmaster was shot dead while attempting to escape through a classroom window.
Police said tactical units and intelligence teams had been deployed to the affected communities to restore order, ensure public safety and support efforts to rescue the abducted victims and arrest the attackers.
The exact number of abducted students remains unclear, according to the Oyo State Universal Basic Education Board, which ordered the temporary closure of schools in Oriire and nearby districts.
Nureni Adeniran, head of the education board, said in a statement late Friday that the closure was intended to prevent further attacks and allow security agencies to stabilise the situation.
