Joy in Nigeria’s Oyo State as abducted students reunite with relatives
Scenes of joy erupted in Nigeria’s Oyo State on Wednesday, as rescued students reunited with their relatives after months in captivity.
Children, who had been kidnapped a few months earlier by armed men, resumed school in the communities of Ahoro-Esinele and Yawoto in Oyo State.
Hamzata Wakili, father of Bello Hassan, a 15-year old who was abducted by an Islamic militant, said, “when my son arrived yesterday, I was happy because I’ve been expecting him.”
Islamic militants abducted more than 40 people, including children, in Oyo last May. One of the teachers abducted alongside the students was killed shortly afterward.
Authorities announced the children’s rescue on Friday. Government spokesman Bayo Onanuga did not specify the total number of students rescued, but said that eight militants were arrested as part of the operation.
“This successful military operation has ended the siege and standoff of over 50 days and has brought relief to the entire nation and the affected families in particular,” Nigerian President Bola Tinubu said in a statement.
The abductions in the southwestern Oyo state represented an escalation of the country’s security crisis, with most such kidnappings usually taking place in the north of Nigeria.
Abductions at schools are common in Nigeria, where militant groups target them to put pressure on the government and extract ransoms.
“The fear is still there,” said Timothy Gbolagade, a teacher in the community of Ahoro-Esinele and Yawoto, adding that sometimes, “we give ourselves a kind of word of encouragement.”
