Oyo Abduction: Rescue Efforts Continue As Security Forces, Hunters Intensify Search
Rescue efforts to secure the release of scores of pupils, teachers and a toddler abducted from schools in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State have intensified, with security operatives and local hunters sustaining coordinated operations across forests surrounding the Old Oyo National Park.
The Oyo State Police Command had earlier dismissed reports circulating on social media claiming that the victims had been rescued, insisting that no such breakthrough had been officially recorded.
The command, however, confirmed that security operations were ongoing, with two suspected kidnappers killed and four others arrested during recent operations linked to the abduction.
OSUN DEFENDER reports that the renewed search comes days after the Oyo State Government imposed a 16-hour curfew on 10 local government areas bordering the Old Oyo National Park as part of measures to strengthen security and support ongoing rescue efforts.
Residents in Iseyin and several communities around the park have reported increased aerial surveillance in recent days, with helicopters observed flying repeatedly over parts of the affected axis.
Although security authorities have yet to issue an official statement on the operations, some of the residents who spoke with OSUN DEFENDER believe the flights are connected with the intensified search for the abducted victims.
In addition to conventional security personnel, local hunters and vigilante groups familiar with the difficult terrain have continued to assist the military, police and other security agencies in combing forests believed to be possible hideouts of the kidnappers.
The abduction has continued to generate anxiety across Oyo State and beyond, with parents, education stakeholders and civil society organisations urging the authorities to sustain pressure on the kidnappers until every victim is rescued safely.
As of the time of filing this report yesterday, there was no official confirmation that any of the abducted schoolchildren or teachers had regained their freedom, while security agencies maintained that rescue operations remained active.
Sodiq Yusuf is a trained media practitioner and journalist with considerable years of experience in print, broadcast, and digital journalism. His interests cover a wide range of causes in politics, governance, sports, community development, and good governance.
