As Nigeria’s Security Crisis Deepens, a Toxic Mix of Jihadists, Separatists, and Criminals Fills the Void

Nigeria is confronting a devastating wave of mass abductions, a symptom of a multifaceted security crisis stretching its military and police to their limits. While recent political framing in the U.S. has cast the violence solely as religious persecution, the reality is far more complex. The government emphasizes that victims come from all faiths in a country roughly divided between a Muslim-majority north and a Christian-majority south.

The nation faces a perfect storm of overlapping threats: a persistent Islamist insurgency in the north-east, heavily armed criminal gangs in the north-west, deadly clashes over land in central regions, and growing separatist unrest in the south-east.

A Breakdown of Key Threats: The ‘Bandit’ Kidnap Gangs

A primary driver of the recent insecurity is the rise of criminal networks known locally as “bandits.” These groups, largely composed of individuals from the Fulani ethnic group, have evolved from pastoralists to predatory kidnappers.

• Motivation & Tactics: Unlike jihadist groups, these gangs are not ideologically driven but are motivated by profit. They see kidnapping for ransom as a lucrative alternative to traditional herding. They are highly mobile, using motorcycles to strike quickly and evade security forces—a tactic demonstrated in recent school abductions.
• Organization & Reach: The gangs are decentralized, with loyalty tied to family or community leaders like the notorious Ado Aleru and Bello Turji. While based in the north-west, their operations have spread to neighboring and central regions, where they also impose taxes on local communities.
• Root Causes: The proliferation of assault rifles from the post-Gaddafi chaos in Libya has fueled their violence. In a bid to combat them, the government designated these bandits as “terrorists” in 2022.

A disturbing new trend involves younger bandits, some teenagers, flaunting their illicit wealth and weapons on social media platforms like TikTok, garnering thousands of followers and further glamorizing the criminal lifestyle.

By James Kisoo