President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has declared all armed non-state actors operating outside the authority of the Nigerian state as terrorists.
The declaration was made during the presentation of the 2026 Appropriation Bill to a joint session of the National Assembly.
According to the president, under a new security architecture, bandits, violent cults, militias, armed gangs, forest-based criminal groups, and foreign-linked mercenaries will no longer be treated as isolated criminal elements but as terrorist threats to national stability. He said the administration is resetting the national security framework and establishing a new national counterterrorism doctrine anchored on unified command, intelligence, community stability, and counter-insurgency.
“This new doctrine will fundamentally change how we confront terrorism and other violent crimes that have become existential threats to our corporate survival and have heightened anxiety among our people,” Tinubu said.
Under the new framework, the government will no longer distinguish between categories of violent non-state actors. Any armed group operating outside the authority of the state will henceforth be regarded as terrorists.
Those affected include bandits, militias, armed gangs, criminal networks with weapons, armed robbers, violent cult groups, forest-based armed collectives, and foreign-linked mercenaries. Tinubu added that groups or individuals carrying out violence for political, ethnic, financial, or sectarian objectives would also fall under the terrorist classification.
He further warned that groups involved in extortion, kidnapping, or territorial control would face the same designation. “Members of any group extorting communities, kidnapping civilians, or occupying or seeking to occupy territory within Nigeria will be classified as terrorists,” he said.
“The denominator is that if you wield lethal weapons and act outside the state’s authority, you are a terrorist.”
Beyond armed actors, the president extended the classification to those who support or enable violent groups, including financiers and political intermediaries. He said financiers, money handlers, harbourers, informants, ransom facilitators, negotiators, transporters, arms suppliers, and safe-house owners would all be declared terrorists.
Tinubu warned that even influential figures would not be exempt, stating that politicians, traditional rulers, community leaders, and religious leaders who facilitate or encourage violent actions and terror within Nigeria are also terrorists.
Nigeria has recently witnessed increased bandit attacks, prompting the government to declare a state of emergency on security and withdraw police personnel from VIP protection and other non-essential duties.
