Oyo, Nigeria: Nigeria’s Defence Headquarters stated on Thursday, May 21, 2026, that displaced members of the Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad terrorist group carried out the recent abductions in Oyo State.
Okay News reports that the Director of Defence Media Operations, Major General Michael Onoja, released a statement refuting publications that claimed the military classified the attackers operating in the South-West region as ordinary criminals.
“The recent incidence of kidnap in Oyo State was clearly perpetrated by terrorists of the JAS Group that have been dislodged from other parts of the country due to high-intensity operations being conducted all over,” Onoja said.
The military command noted that previous communications regarding security in the region were intended to provide intelligence-based context, with Onoja adding, “It is, therefore, inaccurate and misleading to suggest that the Defence Headquarters, at any point, referred to vicious and violent terrorists as criminals.”
The statement noted that the Armed Forces of Nigeria remain deployed across affected areas to dismantle networks threatening national stability.
The clarification follows attacks in the Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, where armed individuals abducted pupils, teachers, and residents from Community High School, Ahoro-Esinle, and an abducted teacher, Michael Oyedokun, was killed after a video linked to the attack surfaced online.
