Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau.
Boko Haram have claimed responsibility for the abduction of Kankara students.
NewsOne Nigeria understands that the Boko Haram terrorists have claimed responsibility for the abduction of hundreds of schoolboys of Government Science Secondary School, Kankara in Katsina State, northern Nigeria.
This online news platform recalls that the attack on Friday night in its wake, left at least 600 out of over 800 schoolboys missing.
Although Aminu Masari, the Katsina state governor, claimed only 333 are missing, a school register register seen by Daily Trust reporter showed 668 students missing.
Days after the kidnap, the leader of Boko Haram, Abubakar Shekau in a 4:30 audio message sent to DAILY NIGERIAN on Tuesday morning, December 15, said his group abducted the schoolboys because Western education is against the tenets of Islam.
“What happened in Katsina was done to promote Islam and discourage un-Islamic practices as Western education is not the type of education permitted by Allah and his Holy Prophet.
“They are also not teaching what Allah and his Holy Prophet commanded. They are rather destructing the Islam. It may be subtly, but Allah the Lord of the Skies and Earths knows whatever is hidden. May Allah promote Islam, may we die as Muslims.”
“In a nutshell, we are behind what happened in Katsina,” he said.
Boko Haram leader ended the message by saying: “The speaker is Abubakar Shekau, leader of Jama’atu Ahlussunna Lid-Da’awati wal Jihad.”
However, in the audio message sent to the Nigerian online platform, Shekau neither gave detail of the attack nor number of the abducted schoolboys nor mentioned issue of negotiation with government.
On the other hand, an analyst at the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, Bulama Bukarti, had told London Telegraph before Shekau released the audio, that there were Boko Haram footprints in the abduction.
Bulama had said that the Boko Haram leader has been trying to establish operations in the region west of Katsina State.
According to him, several hundred fighters in Zamfara State recently claimed to be operating a Boko Haram cell that is loyal to Mr Shekau.
The analyst at the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change added that a similar number of fighters were also recorded claiming allegiance to Mr Shekau in Niger State.
“It is also possible the fighters moved through the large forest from a neighbouring state to stage the attack. Men can be heard shouting ‘Allahu Akbar’ in the background during one eyewitness video of the raid,” Bulama said.