Gunmen kidnapped 39 students and 7 teachers in an attack on multiple schools in Oyo State, southwestern Nigeria last week, according to local authorities and a Christian organization.
The incident occurred on Friday in the Ahoro Esinele community, Oriire district, targeting one secondary school and two primary schools, officials said Monday.
Elisha Olukayode Ogundiya, chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria in Oyo State, said 46 people, mostly children aged 2 to 16, were taken after the attacks.
Police described it as a "coordinated attack," with armed assailants simultaneously raiding Baptist Primary and Nursery School in Yawota, along with two other schools in Esiele, abducting students and teachers.
President Bola Tinubu condemned the attack as "barbaric," vowing that the federal government is working with Oyo State to "rescue all the victims." "We expect a breakthrough soon," he said in a statement from his office.
Governor Oluseyi Abiodun Makinde said one abducted teacher was killed on Sunday, citing a video. Six suspects have been arrested, including those suspected of providing information and logistics to the kidnappers, he added.
A joint rescue operation by soldiers, police, and local militia was disrupted after they encountered improvised explosive devices planted by the attackers, wounding several people, Makinde said. The wounded are receiving treatment.
Mass abductions by armed groups have become a serious security challenge in Nigeria in recent years, as criminal gangs exploit security weaknesses to target travelers, students, and rural communities for ransom. Schools are often targeted, though such attacks are rare in the southwestern part of the country.
