In a decisive demonstration of inter-agency coordination and operational resolve, Nigerian security forces at about 6pm local time have secured the unconditional release of children and their teachers abducted by Ansaru terrorists in Oyo State.
The intelligence led Search and Rescue operation, which concluded on 9 July 2026, followed a direct presidential mandate and was executed by a Defence Headquarters directed Joint Inter Agency Task Force that included the Army, Navy and Airforce as well as support elements from the NPF, DSS, NIA, DIA and NSCDC.
The successful outcome followed the abduction of the children in Oyo State on 15 May 2026. Acting on the President’s explicit directive to secure their safe return, the Chief of Defence Staff, in close consultation with the Service Chiefs and heads of other security agencies, immediately constituted a Joint Inter-Agency Task Force (JIATF).
The Task Force comprised elite elements of the Nigerian Navy Special Boat Service, the 2 Division Garrison of the Nigerian Army, and a specialised tactical unit mobilised by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA). Overall coordination was entrusted to the General Officer Commanding 2 Division.
Upon assembly, the force executed a meticulously planned, multi sectoral advance deep into the Oyo National Forest, the terrorists’ principal sanctuary. Troops led by their respective Commanders deployed simultaneously from several axes and progressively advanced within a 3 weeks period constricting the terrorists’ room for manoeuvre and compelling them to withdraw into a confined enclave.
This ground manoeuvre was significantly enabled by persistent Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) support from ONSA assets and close air support provided by the Nigerian Air Force and the Nigerian Police Force.
The integrated application of these capabilities permitted the precise identification of critical terrorist infrastructure. Precision engagements and ground actions resulted in the destruction of communication nodes and logistics caches while ensuring that the children and their teachers were not harmed.
The subsequent seizure of all key landmarks within the operational area placed the terrorists under severe and sustained pressure, degrading both their command and control architecture and their capacity to sustain operations.
Concurrently, security agencies conducted targeted operations against the terrorists’ support network. Key associates, informants and enablers in communities adjoining the forest were apprehended, while family members of Ansaru operatives residing in various parts of the country were also detained. These measures precipitated a cascade of defections, with the majority of the terrorists abandoning their leader and the enclave.
The cumulative effect of unrelenting military pressure, the systematic dismantling of their logistical and communication infrastructure, and the collapse of internal cohesion ultimately compelled the Ansaru group to release the abducted children and teachers without precondition.
The children, in the process of being handed over to the Oyo State Government are to be reunited with their families following comprehensive medical assessments and initial psychosocial support.
Senior military sources described the operation as a textbook example of intelligence-driven joint action, noting that the seamless integration of kinetic and non-kinetic effects proved decisive in breaking the terrorists’ will while ensuring that the Children remained unarmed.
