The Defence Headquarters has disclosed that the recent kidnap incident in Oyo was carried out by terrorists displaced from other parts of the country following intensified military operations.
Reacting on Thursday to what it described as “mischievous and misleading publications” regarding comments attributed to the military on the classification of terrorists and criminal elements operating in the South-West, the Defence Headquarters clarified that the attackers were linked to the Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad (JAS) group.
In a statement issued by the Director of Defence Media Operations, Maj. Gen. Michael Onoja, the military said the kidnappers were members of the terrorist group displaced by ongoing offensives across different theatres of operation in the country.
“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,” the statement read.
The Defence Headquarters maintained that sustained military pressure on insurgents and terrorist groups had forced some fighters to flee traditional conflict zones, leading to attempts to establish criminal activities in other regions.
The clarification comes amid growing security concerns in parts of the South-West following recent cases of abduction and violent attacks.