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 community violence.
The announcement was made on Monday in Abuja by the Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris, during an end-of-the-year press briefing. The decision represents a clear policy shift, moving such crimes from conventional criminal acts to full counterterrorism measures.
According to Idris, the new designation grants security agencies broader legal and operational powers to pursue, disrupt and dismantle criminal groups terrorising communities across the country.
“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 explained that the move would enhance intelligence sharing and improve coordination among security and intelligence agencies, enabling quicker, more decisive responses to threats.
Idris also highlighted recent successes resulting from improved inter-agency collaboration. “In 2025, two of the most internationally wanted criminals were captured through the coordination of our security agencies and those in the intelligence community,” he disclosed.
The tougher stance comes amid growing concern over the increasing use of forests and remote rural areas as safe havens by kidnappers, bandits and insurgent groups, particularly in farming and border communities.
To address this, the minister said the government’s forest guard initiative would help close security gaps by combining surveillance, local intelligence and rapid-response capabilities in hard-to-reach areas.
“Trained and equipped forest guards will be deployed to secure our forests and other vulnerable locations,” Idris said, stressing that criminal groups would no longer be allowed to operate freely in ungoverned spaces.
The move builds on earlier efforts to strengthen territorial control beyond major cities and deepen collaboration among security agencies.
By designating kidnappers as terrorists, the Federal Government signals zero tolerance for abductions and rural violence while expanding the powers of security forces. The deployment of forest guards is expected to disrupt criminal supply routes, dismantle camps hidden in forests and restore confidence among farming and rural communities affected by insecurity.
