A prosecution witness has told the Federal High Court in Abuja that international terrorist organisation Al-Qaeda supported members of Jama’atu Ansarul Muslimina fi-Biladis Sudan (Ansaru) in planning the May 15, 2026, attacks on schools in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State.
The court heard on Monday, October 12, that the attacks were allegedly intended to pressure the Federal Government into releasing detained Ansaru leaders facing prosecution.
The witness, identified as BBB, testified that following the abduction of pupils and teachers, the terrorists submitted a list containing the names of 30 leaders and members to the government, demanding their release and threatening to kill the captives if their demands were not met.
BBB gave the testimony during the ongoing trial of five men accused of involvement in the attacks. The defendants are Mahmud Muhammad, also known as Abu Bara’a and Abbas Mukhtar; Abubakar Abbas, also known as Isah Adam and Mallam Mahmuda Al-Nigeri; Abdulrazak Umar, also known as Abu Khalifa and Abu Khalid; Yunusa Musa, also known as Abu Yunusa Bin Musa; and Shamsu Adamu Sani, also known as Abu Itisar.
According to the prosecution, the defendants hail from Okene Local Government Area of Kogi State, Daura Local Government Area of Katsina State, and Suleja Local Government Area of Niger State.
Led in evidence by the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation, Oyedepo Rotimi, SAN, the witness said security agencies launched the operation to rescue the abductees after the Federal Government refused to negotiate with the terrorists or meet their demands.
BBB told the court that he knew the defendants through his official duties, particularly the first defendant, Muhammad, whom he said he knew in Maiduguri as one of Boko Haram’s founding members and a former head of its security and intelligence unit.
The witness said Muhammad’s father was from Okene in Kogi State, while his mother was from Borno State. He alleged that Muhammad was among those who left Boko Haram in 2012 to establish Ansaru, with the stated objective of promoting their ideology of Islamic governance in Nigeria and attacking foreign nationals.
According to BBB, members of the group believed that foreign nationals were killing Muslims abroad, a belief he said motivated their kidnapping and killing of foreigners in Nigeria.
He recalled that the group’s killing of seven foreign nationals in 2014 led the United States to designate Ansaru as a terrorist organisation and declare Muhammad an internationally wanted terrorist.
The witness further alleged that Muhammad led several kidnapping and killing operations after assuming leadership of Ansaru and appointed the second defendant, Abbas, as head of operations.
BBB told the court that Muhammad had led an attack on the Emir of Potiskum and was also linked to an operation in which 17 military officers and three civilians were killed.
He said Muhammad was arrested in 2025 and alleged that Ansaru’s ideology required members to undertake operations aimed at securing the release of detained leaders.
According to the witness, following Muhammad’s arrest, Abbas identified high-profile targets for attacks intended to pressure the government into releasing the detained leaders.
BBB cited the November 4, 2025, attack on the convoy of Jafaru Mohammed Ali, a member of the House of Representatives representing Agwara/Borgu. He alleged that the attack resulted in the deaths of four military personnel and injuries to four Department of State Services personnel.
The witness said the alleged plan was to abduct the lawmaker, publicly humiliate him and use his release as leverage to secure the freedom of Muhammad, Abbas and other detained members.
He added that Ansaru members also planned to attack the Wawa military base in New Bussa, Niger State, because they believed some of their detained members were being held there.
After the alleged plan to attack Wawa failed, BBB said the group relocated to the South-West, believing that the presence of media organisations in the region would help publicise its demands and increase pressure on the Federal Government.
The witness, who said he participated in investigating the Oriire attacks, alleged that Ansaru members moved the abducted pupils and teachers to a secure location in a forest near Old Oyo National Park.
He told the court that the group submitted a list of 30 members, including its leaders, and threatened to kill the captives if the government failed to meet its demands.
BBB further alleged that the terrorists resisted security operatives who entered the forest to rescue the victims. He said one captive was killed during the confrontation, while the group threatened to kill others if the rescue effort continued.
The witness said the killing of two victims before the rescue operation heightened the urgency of the security agencies’ response, citing what he described as the group’s history of killing innocent people.
Explaining his knowledge of the third, fourth and fifth defendants, BBB alleged that they were Ansaru members who communicated with some of the group’s commanders, including a commander involved in holding the Oriire captives.
He maintained that the attacks were carried out in furtherance of the ideology promoted by the group’s leaders, particularly the first and second defendants, and were intended to compel the government to release those in custody.
The witness reiterated that the terrorists submitted a list containing the names of the first and second defendants, among others, and threatened to kill all the captives if their demands were rejected.
He said security agencies eventually rescued the remaining victims, although the operation resulted in the deaths of security personnel, including a senior police officer and an Army officer. Two of the abducted victims had also been killed before the rescue.
Further hearing in the case is scheduled to continue on October 13 before Justice Salim Ibrahim.
