West Africa security crisis deepens as Amotekun launches forest manhunt to rescue 45 abducted Oyo schoolchildren

A major security operation has been launched in Oyo State as the Amotekun Corps intensifies a coordinated forest manhunt to rescue 45 schoolchildren abducted by armed groups, in an incident that has raised fresh concerns over rural safety across West Africa.

Security operatives have been deployed across dense forest corridors believed to be used by the attackers, with tactical tracking teams, local intelligence networks, and surveillance units working urgently to locate the missing pupils.

Officials say the mission has taken on regional urgency, with increased monitoring of border and rural communities amid fears that the abductors may attempt to move the victims deeper into remote forest areas to avoid detection.

The abduction has sparked outrage across Nigeria, reigniting debates over school security, rural policing capacity, and the growing threat of kidnapping networks operating in parts of the south-west.

Authorities have pledged an aggressive response, insisting that all available security resources are being mobilised until the children are safely rescued and the perpetrators arrested.