Overview
- Gunmen seized 46 people—39 students and seven teachers—from three schools in Oyo State on May 15, triggering nationwide protests and a month-long teachers' strike.
- Security agencies announced the full rescue of the remaining captives in a multi-week military, police and intelligence campaign that concluded with the presidency confirming the release on July 10.
- Officials said some assailants were killed and eight were arrested, while the army confirmed that security personnel suffered casualties during the operation.
- Sources reported the captives were held in forest camps inside Old Oyo National Park and that operations targeted supply lines and associates to weaken the kidnappers, but operational details remain partly unverified.
- The rescue leaves unanswered problems: more than 40 children taken in Borno on the same day remain captive, experts warn kidnappings are spreading beyond the northeast, and the outcome will test plans to protect schools ahead of the 2027 elections.