Most of the victims were in a lecture hall. An eyewitness under protection of anonymity described the attackerS as dressed in black and asking for all female students to lie face down. He also said that “the attackers were wearing suits and were running and shooting everywhere.” There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack but it is known that the Islamist militant group Boko Haram, whose name means “Western education is forbidden,” has repeatedly targeted civilians in the north. Boko Haram attracted international attention with the kidnappings of more than 270 schoolgirls in April and the government and soldiers have failed to rescue them.
Police officers arrived on the scene and had killed two of the attackers. Kano State police commissioner, Adelere Shinaba, described them as “insurgents.” There had been no bombings for more than a month in the area. President Goodluck Jonathan called the Kano raid a “dastardly attack” later in a statement.
