Scenes from the dormitories of the Catholic school in Nigeria's Niger State where students were abducted from. Christian Association of Nigeria Abuja, Nigeria —

Police in Nigeria’s north-central Niger State reported that a group of armed bandits invaded a private Catholic school abducting hundreds of schoolchildren early on Friday, amid widespread outrage over violence against Christians in the West African nation.

Despite some students managing to get to safety during the attack, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) said 215 students and 12 teachers were abducted in the raid.

Parents have been arriving at the school to pick their children up, ahead of the school shutting down, CAN’s Niger State chapter chairman Most. Rev. Bulus Dauwa Yohanna said.

Yohanna, who visited the

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