The Federal Government has formally designated kidnappers and violent armed groups as terrorists, marking a decisive escalation in the country’s response to abductions, attacks on farmers and community violence.
The announcement was made on Monday in Abuja by the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, during the Federal Government’s end-of-year media briefing.
Idris said the decision signals a clear shift from treating mass kidnappings and rural attacks as conventional crimes to confronting them with the full weight of Nigeria’s counterterrorism framework.
“Henceforth, any armed group or individual that kidnaps our children, attacks our farmers and terrorises our communities will be classified and dealt with as terrorists,” the minister declared.
He said the era of ambiguous labels was over, stressing that anyone who inflicts terror on communities, whether acting alone or in groups, would be treated strictly under terrorism laws.
According to Idris, the new designation will enhance intelligence sharing, deepen inter-agency collaboration and enable faster, more decisive security operations nationwide.
He noted that improved coordination among security and intelligence agencies has already yielded tangible results, including the arrest of two internationally wanted criminals in 2025.
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As part of measures to secure vulnerable rural communities, the minister also announced the deployment of trained and fully equipped forest guards to reclaim forests and remote areas commonly used as criminal hideouts.
He said the forest guards would combine surveillance, local intelligence gathering and rapid-response capabilities to disrupt criminal networks, dismantle camps and reassure farming communities plagued by insecurity.
Idris cited the arrest of a senior Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) leader operating in Nigeria as evidence of the effectiveness of coordinated security efforts, describing him as one of the most wanted terrorists on the African continent.
He recalled that the suspect, who had a substantial bounty placed on him by the United States, was apprehended alongside his chief of staff through joint operations by security and intelligence agencies and is currently facing trial.
The minister said the designation of kidnappers as terrorists underscores the government’s zero-tolerance stance on abductions and rural violence, while reinforcing its commitment to restoring security and stability across the country.
