How arrest of kidnappers’ family members led to rescue of Oriire pupils

Fresh details have emerged on how the DSS’s arrest of kidnappers’ family members and weeks of military pressure led to the successful rescue of 39 schoolchildren and six teachers abducted in Oyo State, though one teacher was killed in captivity.

Fresh details have emerged on the intelligence-led operation that led to the rescue of schoolchildren and teachers abducted from Ahoro-Esinle, Yawota and Alawusa communities in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, with security sources revealing that arresting the kidnappers’ family members proved the decisive turning point.

Thirty-nine schoolchildren and seven teachers were abducted by terrorists on May 15, 2026. One teacher was killed in captivity, but the remaining victims were rescued on July 10 in a coordinated operation involving the military and the Department of State Services (DSS).

According to security sources, weeks of intelligence gathering and military pressure culminated in DSS operatives tracking down and arresting several wives and children of the kidnappers across different communities and cities nationwide.

The operation was coordinated by a senior DSS official after forces had sealed off escape routes and surrounded the terrorists’ hideout inside the National Park forest. The family members were reportedly moved to Abuja for interrogation.

Sources said leaked videos of the interrogations unsettled the kidnappers, who abruptly softened their hardline stance and proposed swapping the hostages for their wives’ freedom and safe passage — a deal security agencies rejected outright, demanding the captives be released first.

Investigators believe the arrests reduced the odds of the hostages being harmed, as the kidnappers feared repercussions for their own families.

The final order to storm the camp came Thursday night, after intelligence confirmed the hostages were no longer being used as human shields. The assault met weaker-than-expected resistance following weeks of gun battles that had depleted the terrorists’ ammunition.

Scores of terrorists were killed and eight arrested. Rescue team members suffered casualties, but all surviving hostages were freed safely.