The Secretary-General condemns the shocking mass abduction of schoolgirls in Chibok, Borno state, north-eastern Nigeria on 14 April. He calls for the immediate release of all the girls abducted and their safe return to their families.

The Secretary-General is deeply alarmed about the increasing frequency and brutality of attacks against educational institutions in the north of the country. The targeting of schools and school children is a grave violation of international humanitarian law. Schools are, and must remain, safe places where children can learn and grow in peace.