The Federal Government has officially designated kidnappers and violent armed groups as terrorists, marking a significant escalation in Nigeria’s response to abductions, attacks on farmers and persistent community violence across the country.
The announcement was made on Monday by the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mr Mohammed Idris, during an end-of-year press briefing in Abuja.
Idris said the new classification signals a decisive shift from treating mass kidnappings and rural attacks as conventional crimes to confronting them through full-scale counterterrorism measures.
“Henceforth, any armed group or individual that kidnaps our children, attacks our farmers and terrorises our communities is officially classified and will be dealt with as a terrorist,” the minister said.
He added: “The era of ambiguous nomenclature is over. If you terrorise our people, whether as a group or an individual, you are a terrorist and will be classified as such. There will be no hiding under any other name.”
According to the minister, the policy will strengthen intelligence sharing and operational coordination among security agencies, enabling faster, more decisive and unified action against criminal networks.
Idris noted that improved inter-agency collaboration had already yielded tangible results, revealing that in 2025 alone, two of the most internationally wanted criminals were apprehended through coordinated security operations.
As part of efforts to secure vulnerable rural areas, the minister also announced the deployment of trained and fully equipped forest guards. He said the personnel would combine surveillance, local intelligence and rapid-response capabilities to secure forests and remote locations often used as hideouts by criminal groups.
By formally classifying kidnappers and bandits as terrorists, the government, he said, is signalling zero tolerance for abductions and rural violence, while expanding the legal and operational powers available to security forces.
The forest guard initiative, Idris explained, is expected to disrupt criminal supply routes, dismantle camps and restore confidence among farming communities severely affected by insecurity.
Highlighting recent security successes, the minister disclosed the arrest of a senior Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) leader residing in Nigeria, described as one of the most wanted terrorists on the African continent and a target of a substantial bounty placed by the United States.
“The ISWAP leader residing in Nigeria has been captured through the coordination of all security agencies and the intelligence community,” Idris said.
“Recall that Abu Barra was also captured a few months ago and presented to the public by the National Security Adviser and other security chiefs. These arrests demonstrate what coordinated security efforts can achieve.
“This individual had a significant bounty placed on his head by the Americans, and today, together with his chief of staff, he is undergoing trial and will face justice accordingly,” he added.
