The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) says the dislodged members of Jama’atu Ahlis-Sunna Lidda’Awati Wal-Jihad (JAS), the formal name of notorious terrorist group, Boko Haram, is responsible for the recent coordinated attacks on three schools in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State.
Micheal Onoja, the DHQ spokesperson, said in a statement on Thursday that the JAS members, who carried out a mass abduction during the attacks, were dislodged from other parts by intense military operations. PREMIUM TIMES reported last Friday that the assailants invaded three schools in the Ogbomoso axis of Oyo State, kidnapping students and teachers.
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“The recent incidence (incident) 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,” Mr Onoja, a major general, stated.
PREMIUM TIMES reported that terrorists invaded three schools in Yawota and Ahoro-Esinle in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, abducting at least 45, including pupils and teachers.
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One of the abducted teachers, Michael Oyedokun, was later killed in captivity.
The abduction has generated reactions with many Nigerians saying that terrorists have established a base in the South-west.
Further DHQ clarification
During a press briefing last Sunday, Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, blamed the attack on terrorists, saying the pressure on the terror groups in the north and pushing them southward.
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Noting that 39 pupils and seven teachers were kidnapped in the attack, Mr Makinde announced that one of the teachers was killed. He further revealed that a joint rescue operation team, including soldiers, police and local vigilantes, ran into explosives planted by the terrorists, leaving some operatives wounded.
According to him, six suspects have been arrested in connection with the attack.
“With the pressure on the terrorists and the bandits in the North-West, they will keep moving southward. But the problem that we have is when you have pressure in one place, we must be prepared on this side to either repel or neutralise any terrorists fleeing the pressure points,” the governor has said.
Following his remarks, many Nigerians raised concerns that terrorists have established a base in the South-west. But the Defence Headquarters countered this, describing the incident as an isolated criminal act and does not reflect the existence of any entrenched terrorist structure in the region.
However, many news platforms and blogs framed the DHQ statement as a rejoinder to Governor Makinde.
In its statement on Thursday, the DHQ described as “mischievous and misleading” the reports that it said misrepresented its comments on the security situation in the South-west.
“For clarity, at no time did the Defence Headquarters undermine the authority of any democratically elected leader or sought to diminish the gravity of the heinous crime committed against innocent citizens by terrorist elements,” Mr Onoja, the Defence spokesperson, said.
Mr Onoja said the clarification became necessary to provide “intelligence-based context” on the situation and prevent misinformation and public panic.
He stressed that it never downplayed the gravity of the attack or referred to terrorists as ordinary criminals, describing such interpretations as inaccurate and misleading.
“It is therefore inaccurate and misleading to suggest that the Defence Headquarters, at any point, referred to vicious and violent terrorists as criminals,” he added.
The military also reaffirmed its commitment to constitutional governance and democratic institutions.
“The Armed Forces of Nigeria remain fully committed to supporting constitutional governance, protecting democratic institutions and working collaboratively with all levels of government to safeguard the nation,” he stated.
Mr Onoja said troops were actively deployed in affected areas in collaboration with other security agencies and local authorities to ensure “all criminal and terrorist networks threatening the peace, stability and unity of the nation” are dismantled.
What is JAS Group?
JAS is the formal name of the group widely known as Boko Haram. While Boko Haram became widely used because of the group’s anti-Western education ideology, JAS reflects its Islamic identity and official designation. The JAS acronym translates to “People Committed to the Propagation of the Prophet’s Teachings and Jihad.”
However, it is not clear why the Defence Headquarters did not simply identify the group as Boko Haram which is more relatable to many Nigerians.
In 2020, the group’s late leader, Abubakar Shekau, dispatched Mallam Sadiku to the Niger-Kaduna border with the instructions to build operational bases along the axis, according to a report by the Institute for Security Studies (ISS).
Upon arrival, the terror commander initially established camps around Maganda-Kugu axis in the Alawa forest, Shiroro LGA in Niger State, where the group operated for at least five years, according to interviews with locals, intelligence sources and former members of the group. However, it later relocated to Kainji forest in July 2025, following sustained military aerial offensives and a deteriorating relationship with notorious bandit kingpin Dogo Gide, with whom the group had collaborated on several attacks.
This newspaper has extensively documented the atrocities of the Sadiku Boko Haram faction in its former enclaves. Most worrisome was how the group kidnapped young girls and children for forced labour and child marriage. It is now replicating the same tactics in its new strongholds.
Our reporter understands that a Boko Haram faction led by Mallam Sadiku has recently relocated to Kainji National Park, Niger which links to the Old Oyo National Park, through many routes and a river in Oke-Ogun where locals said the abducted students and their teachers were herded into the protected Oyo forest.
The Sadiku Boko Haram faction was responsible for the abduction of over 300 students and staff of St. Mary’s Catholic School in Papiri, Niger State, in November 2025. The abductees were released in batches after the government reportedly paid ransom to free them.
The group also claimed responsibility for the abduction of more than 150 women and children from Woro, Kwara State. It has also abducted people from places like Kasuwan Daji and Konkoso in neighbouring Niger State.
An expanding landscape
This reporter understands that three jihadi groups — Sadiku-led Boko Haram, Ansaru and Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) — now operate in the Kainji corridor which stretches across Niger and Kwara and also links to a large forest in Benin Republic.
Local sources in Borgu (Niger) and Kaiama (Kwara) corroborated Mr Onoja, saying the military and a joint local security team [involving vigilantes from Nigeria and Benin] have intensified offensives against Boko Haram and Ansaru jihadi groups around Kainji forest.
During one of the operations in April, the joint vigilante team engaged in a gunfight with the Sadiku-led Boko Haram faction.
“The fighting started from Babanna axis in Niger State and they were chased down to Nuku in Kwara State where they killed five forest guards on 10 April,” a local vigilante leader whose colleague took part in the offensives, said.
The 10 April clash extended into Old Oyo National Park “where they fought for hours,” the vigilante leader added.
Another source whose name has been withheld for his safety said the Boko Haram group has not relocated from Kainji.
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“They are still in Kainji,” he said, adding they may be attempting to extend to Old Oyo National Park.
The Ansaru terror group also attempted to establish a base inside the South-west vast forest through a commander known as Aiman. But sources knowledgeable about the matter said the plan was foiled after the Nigerian government arrested the group’s leaders, creating a leadership vacuum and confusion among their fighters.
“Aiman had to move back to Kainji forest,” a source who lives in a village near the Ansaru stronghold told our reporter. “Shortly after, the foreign (JNIM) terrorists joined them.”
Both JNIM and Ansaru belong to al-Qaeda global terror network.
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