As the combined team of security agencies intensified the search of the abducted students of Maga in Zuru Emirate, the Chairman of Zuru Emirate league of chief Imams Alhaji Suleiman Muhammad Tanko has directed the chief Imams of the 402 jumm’at mosques in the emirate to organise daily special prayer for God’s divine intervention in the rescue of the abducted students.

The chairman, who is also the Chief Imam of Zuru jumm’at Central Mosque said the Special prayer has become absolutely necessary in view of the unpredictable condition of the 25 abducted students and traumatic condition the parents are subjected to.

In separate letters to the Chief Imams, the chairman “ humbly requested you to organise daily special prayer in addition to the normal prayers with the hope that Allah SWT will divinely intervene in ensuring the success of the rescue operation.”

While commending the efforts being made by the state Governor, Nasir Idris in tackling the security challenges in the state, Alhaji Suleiman appealed to the rich and in the society to support Islamic schools with large numbers of students to ensure consistent prayers for Allah’s intervention.

The Chief Imam’s prayer initiative was coming at the time the Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General Waid Shaib arrived at Maga and organised comprehensive operation strategies for the combined team of security agencies with the capacity of ensuring immediate safe rescue of the abducted students.

On Sunday night, some heavily armed bandits stormed the Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School, Maga in Danko/Wasagu local government area of the state.

Meanwhile, the Kebbi State Government has disclosed that out of 26 girls abducted during the invasion by bandits, two managed to escape, 24 schoolgirls remain in captivity.

The Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Halima Bande, made the clarification while speaking to Newsmen in Zuru town

Bande explained that bandits abducted 26 girls during the invasion, and although two managed to escape, 24 schoolgirls remain in captivity.

She identified the students who escaped as Salma and Hauwa’u Liman, confirming that they are now back and safe.

“Only two have escaped so far. This is a tragedy that has put everyone around us in trauma. We don’t know where they sleep, the food they eat, or the environment they are in.”

The Commissioner also urged the general public to avoid spreading misleading information about the abduction, noting that there has been a lot of unauthentic information circulating about the incident.

“Therefore, I implore journalists and media outlets to rely only on authentic information regarding the incident,” she maintained.

Meanwhile, the state government has described as fake, false the claim by Rep. Riley M. Moore, member of the United States Congress that the tragic incident occurred in a “Christian enclave.”

The government said the claim is entirely untrue and a clear misrepresentation of facts,noting that Maga is a predominantly dominated by Muslims community, and the majority of the abducted students are Muslims which is contrary to the claim made by the American lawmaker.

Chief Press Secretary to Kebbi State Government, Ahmed Idris made the position of the Government known in a statement made available to newsmen in Birnin Kebbi.

“This is factually incorrect. Banditry in Northwestern Nigeria has overwhelmingly affected Muslim communities. These criminal groups do not discriminate based on religion.

“On different occasions, these bandits attacked and killed Muslims in their places of worship, more than the Christians.

“A recent example is the attack on Muslim worshippers in a village near Malumfashi in Katsina State, where several people were killed inside a mosque during prayers.

“If these bandits were driven by religious motives, why then do they attack and kill Muslim while praying in a mosque? It is pertinent to note that the American lawmaker has either been misinformed or has chosen to ignore the realities on the ground.

“The Kebbi State Government wishes to make it clear to the global community that terrorists in Nigeria target victims indiscriminately irrespective of religion or political affiliation. They attack people in their homes, schools, places of worship and sometimes block roads, kill or abduct people on transit.

“For over a decade, the predominantly Muslim states of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa have endured sustained attacks, killings and displacement caused by the Boko Haram insurgency. The same case in Northwestern states of Kaduna, Katsina, Zamfara, Sokoto and Kebbi all with a large population of Muslims with few populations of Christians have suffered more casualties from banditry than any other region.

“We ,therefore,urge the lawmaker Rep. Moore and others making similar claims to kindly verify any information and report from Nigeria properly before making public statements that may further distort facts or fuel misunderstanding”. (SUN)