41 kids and teachers rescued from a Nigerian abduction. The army reports that 44 pupils and staff taken from three Oyo state schools on the 15th of May have been freed after a month‑long operation that claimed the lives of several soldiers.
Families say the ordeal was harrowing, but relief dominated the mood. "It was a harrowing experience... but we thank God that it ended well," said Prof Wole Alamu, whose wife, headteacher Rachael Folawe Alamu, was also a victim.
Police, intelligence agencies and local vigilantes joined forces in the raid, which dismantled kidnappers’ hideouts in the Old Oyo National Park forest. Some suspects remain at large, but the army says more operations are planned.
The teachers' union voiced joy at the safe return but warned that promised security measures—CCTV, fencing and patrols—are not yet in place. “If the Safe School Initiative is fully implemented, our schools will be secure,” the union leader Hassan Ajibola said.
The incident underscores a surge in school kidnappings across Nigeria, raising fears ahead of next year’s elections. Calls for a thorough investigation into how Safe School Initiative funds have been used are growing louder.
