Nigeria is facing a severe deterioration in national security: following a wave of mass abductions targeting schoolchildren and Christian worshippers, President Bola Tinubu has declared a nationwide security emergency and ordered the temporary closure of several schools. This is reported by The WP Times, citing Bloomberg.
Tinubu announced that security agencies had been authorised to recruit several thousand additional personnel to reinforce operations in the most affected regions. Nomadic herders were instructed to surrender all illegal firearms without delay. The president also ordered the deployment of further special units tasked with “driving terrorists and bandits out of the forested areas”. “Agents of evil will have nowhere left to hide,” Tinubu said.
Nearly 400 people have been abducted across the country over the past two weeks, including pupils from primary and secondary schools. The surge in attacks prompted Tinubu to cancel his planned attendance at the G20 summit in South Africa and an African Union meeting in Angola. Although some hostages have been released, more than 250 pupils and teachers remain in captivity following an attack on a Catholic school on 22 November.
Domestic and international pressure has intensified. Nigerian citizens – as well as US President Donald Trump – have criticised Tinubu’s security strategy. Trump accused the Nigerian authorities of failing to protect Christians and claimed that targeted attacks were taking place. Tinubu rejected these accusations and again urged herders’ associations to halt open grazing practices and hand over illicit weapons. He noted that the government had set up a dedicated Ministry of Livestock Development to address the long-standing disputes.
Tinubu also called on the National Assembly to review legislation that would enable individual states to establish their own local police forces. Nigeria’s centralised police system has faced long-standing criticism for its inability to contain widespread crime and jihadist violence.
In early November, Trump warned that the United States might consider military action in response to alleged persecution of Christians. Nigeria firmly rejected any unilateral intervention. Presidential spokesman Daniel Bwala stated that Trump’s claims were “false” and appeared to be an attempt to exert political pressure.
According to figures from the European Parliament, Nigeria remains one of the most dangerous regions in the world for Christians. Between 2019 and 2023, almost 17,000 Christians were killed in targeted attacks; in the first seven months of 2025 alone, more than 7,000 people lost their lives.
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