In brief
Nigerian forces liberated 44 kidnapped pupils and teachers in Oyo state after a month‑long operation that also captured the boys’ abductors. The rescue, which saw casualties among the soldiers, brings relief to families who had waited for months. Victims are now receiving medical care before returning home. The event highlighted ongoing security concerns as Nigeria prepares for national elections. Experts urge full implementation of the Safe School Initiative to protect schools.
More than 40 kidnapped children and teachers freed after Nigerian army operation
News summary: The Nigerian military has declared that it has freed all 44 pupils and teachers abducted two months ago from schools in the southern state of Oyo, and has arrested some of their captors.
A local teachers' union released on the BBC said the families were relieved. Families, however, describe the ordeal as harrowing and are still waiting to reunite with their loved ones.
The army said that several soldiers died in the rescue mission.
Nijay flag says the freed captives are receiving medical treatment at an undisclosed hospital and will return home at a later date, according to army spokesman Danjuma Jonah Danjuma in a statement issued on Friday evening.
The Oyo state abductions caused widespread concern in Nigeria because of their scale and because it took place in the predominantly Christian south‑west of the country – as opposed to the predominantly Muslim north where such attacks happen more often. The army said the month‑long rescue operation involved the military, police, intelligence agencies and local vigilante groups.
“In our operation the army identified those behind the abduction and dismantled their support network, including informants and hideouts in the Old Oyo National Park forest,” the army said. It added that some of its personnel were killed during the operation but did not give more details. The army announced on Friday that it had arrested a number of suspects, but did not say how many remain at large. The army says more operations are planned.
Speaking to the BBC, Hassan Ajibola, head of the teachers' union in Oyo State, said he was “happy and elated” and urged the authorities to fully implement stronger security measures as outlined in their Safe School Initiative, launched over a decade ago following the infamous Chibok schoolgirls’ abduction.
“If that program is fully implemented and as intended, our schools will be very, very secured,” he said. He added that measures should include deploying security personnel to schools, CCTV, regular patrols, fencing school premises and using local security groups to support areas facing shortages of personnel. In Nigeria, continued school kidnappings have led to calls from lawmakers and rights groups for an investigation into how the Safe School Initiative funds have been used.
Additional reporting by Natasha Booty and Abayomi Adisa.
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