Nigerian President Bola Tinubu announced on Friday that dozens of students and teachers abducted from three schools in the southwestern state of Oyo have been rescued after 56 days in captivity.

In a statement, Tinubu said he was “profoundly happy” that security agencies had carried out the successful rescue operation. Eight of the assailants have been arrested, and an unspecified number have been killed.

On May 15, 46 students and staff were kidnapped from two primary schools and one secondary school. The government has blamed the kidnappings on Boko Haram. The youngest child taken was aged two, while the oldest was 16. One teacher was killed shortly after the abduction.

Presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga confirmed on X that all students and teachers had been rescued, stating there “was no quid pro quo in the rescue.”

School kidnappings have become common in Nigeria, as armed groups seek large ransoms from the government and citizens. The situation has been worsened by a security crisis partly fueled by the Boko Haram insurgency in the northeast. In 2024, gunmen earned more than $1.6 million in ransom payments, according to SBM Intelligence.

Defense Minister Christopher Musa said earlier this week that the assailants planned to use the hostages as leverage to pressure the government to release some of their commanders from prison.

Source: www.aljazeera.com