The General Officer Commanding (GOC), 2 Division, Nigerian Army, Major General Chinedu Nnebeufe, has revealed that security forces opted for a prolonged ground operation to rescue the abducted schoolchildren and teachers from Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State after aerial surveillance failed to locate them.
Speaking on the rescue operation, Nnebeufe said the dense forest where the victims were held made it impossible for aircraft and drones to detect their exact location.
“We opted to use a ground operation because the aircraft and drones deployed during the rescue mission could not locate the abducted schoolchildren and teachers. The forest canopy was so thick that if you are underneath it, you can hardly see rays of sunlight,” he said.
The GOC disclosed that the operation came at a heavy cost, with two soldiers killed in action and several others wounded.
“During one of the operations, we lost two soldiers, while some others sustained injuries. One of the wounded soldiers suffered a gunshot that left him with a broken arm,” he said.
According to Nnebeufe, he personally took over the operation, which was reinforced by multiple security agencies following the intervention of the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, who deployed the National Counter Terrorism Centre team.
He said the operation involved personnel from the Defence Headquarters Special Forces, the Nigerian Police Force, the Department of State Services (DSS), the Nigerian Air Force team from Kainji, troops of Operation Savannah Shield from Kwara State, local vigilantes and the Western Nigeria Security Network, codenamed Amotekun.
He added that some local hunters who participated in the mission also lost their lives during the operation.
Describing the mission as highly complex, the Army commander said it lasted for more than one month and involved a combination of intelligence gathering, coordinated military action and sustained pressure on the kidnappers.
He explained that security agencies first identified the terrorist kingpins responsible for the abduction before systematically dismantling their logistics network and intelligence structure operating within the Old Oyo National Park and other locations across the country.
“We focused on identifying the terrorist kingpins that masterminded the abduction and then started cutting off their logistics and informants at the Old Oyo National Park and other parts of the country,” he said.
Nnebeufe disclosed that security operatives also tracked and arrested members of the terrorists’ network, including relatives and collaborators, in Adamawa, Kano and other parts of the country, a move he said mounted significant pressure on the kidnappers.
“We looked for other members of their team and members of their families in Adamawa, Kano and different parts of the country and got them, and this put pressure on the terrorists,” he added.
He said the decisive stage of the operation came when security forces blocked the terrorists’ main logistics hub in Ashamu, leaving the abductors with no option but to release the victims unconditionally.
“During the last phase of the operation, we blocked their major logistics hub in Ashamu, and it finally made them willingly release the schoolchildren and teachers unconditionally,” he said.
However, the GOC stressed that the objective of the operation went beyond securing the victims’ freedom, insisting that security forces remain committed to dismantling terrorist networks operating within the region.
“We insisted that it was not just about securing their release but about bringing an end to the activities of terrorists operating in the region,” he said.