The Defence Headquarters has described the recent attacks on schools in Oyo State as isolated criminal acts rather than signs of an entrenched terrorist network in the South-West. The Director of Defence Media Operations, Maj.-Gen. Michael Onoja, made this known on Tuesday while reacting to attacks on Baptist Nursery and Primary School, Yawota; Community Grammar School, Esiele; and LA Primary School in Ogbomoso, all located in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State.

The Defence Headquarters has announced that ongoing joint counterterrorism operations involving Nigerian troops and the United States Africa Command have led to the killing of 175 Islamic State fighters in Nigeria’s North-east. The military said the operations targeted insurgent strongholds across the region, which has remained the epicentre of terrorism and insurgency in the country. In a statement issued Tuesday, Defence Headquarters spokesperson, Major General Samaila Uba, said the coordinated offensive began several days ago and had dealt a major blow to terrorist networks operating within the Lake Chad basin and surrounding communities.

Seyi Makinde has confirmed that seven teachers were abducted during the recent attack on schools in the Oriire area of Oyo State, while authorities are still working to determine the number of missing pupils. The governor spoke on Sunday after meeting with security chiefs and service commanders over the incident. Makinde also disclosed that an Islamic Studies teacher was killed during the attack by suspected gunmen. He said security agencies had arrested six suspects within the affected community, alongside three other persons of interest linked to the kidnapping.

Kaduna-based Islamic cleric Sheikh Ahmad Gumi has warned against the full involvement of the United States forces in Nigeria’s fight against terrorism, saying such a move could attract international terror groups into the country. Gumi made the declaration on his Facebook post this morning, saying Nigeria’s sovereignty “is a red line” and expressing optimism in the country’s military capability of handling insecurity if operations are carried out without “prejudices and deception".

In a joint operation in northeastern Nigeria on May 16, the US military and the Armed Forces of Nigeria killed top Islamic State leader Abu Bilal al Minuki, along with other unidentified commanders. US Africa Command (AFRICOM) designated Minuki as the "ISIS (Islamic State) number two" and the "director of global operations." " In recent years, IS has drastically changed, with sub-Saharan Africa now accounting for about 90% of its attacks. Its branch in Nigeria is by far the busiest. According to Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, the two nations executed a "daring joint operation that dealt a heavy blow" to IS.

Questions are beginning to emerge between titans of the First City Monument Bank, FCMB, over the appointment of FCMB Group’s Group Chief Technology Officer, Hima Mandali (an Indian American national), amid growing conversations around localisation, indigenous participation and executive leadership within Nigeria’s financial sector.