Tap to unmute
Is Nigeria's security situation worsening or is there progress? | Inside Story
Embed
- Published on Mar 4, 2026
- Armed groups have killed more than 200 people in several attacks in Nigeria in recent days. The Christian worshippers abducted from churches last month have been released. How serious is Nigeria's security situation-and what progress is being made?
Presenter: Adrian Finighan
Guests:
James Barnett -- Non-resident research fellow at the Hudson Institute, specialising in armed groups in Nigeria
Oluwole Ojewale -- Regional Coordinator for West and Central Africa at the Institute for Security Studies.
Melvin Foote -- founder and president of the Constituency for Africa and a specialist on US-Africa policy
Subscribe to our channel: bit.ly/AJSubscribe
Follow us on Twitter: / ajenglish
Find us on Facebook: / aljazeera
Check our website: www.aljazeera.com/
Check out our Instagram page: / aljazeeraenglish
Download AJE Mobile App: aje.io/AJEMobile
#NigeriaViolence #NigeriaSecurity #NigeriaCrisis #ArmedGroups #NigeriaAttacks #NigeriaConflict #ChurchAbductions #NigeriaKidnappings #WestAfricaSecurity #AlJazeeraEnglish
The Nigeria state is absent, period. It does not exist in the real sense of what a state is.
For you and your broke father and mother. For Nigerians with money and utility, the state works better than any western country you can dream about visiting.
@OPFCartoonsSo, in other words Nigeria as a state only works for the rich. Is that your idea of a state then? One that only works for those with money? If you really think that way, then perhaps you and everyone else who think like that are part of the problem. And going by your claim, if it works so well for those with money, why do they keep flocking to Western hospitals for regular medical checkup and treatment. Even your presidents shuttle London and Paris for medical treatments that any hospital in any functioning state ought to be able to handle.
@infrastructureofpower Listen carefully you dunce. That is not only MY idea of a state, it is THE idea of every single state that exists. You're just so low in the social class that you think it is supposed to be something else, because we told you this was a fair world, God exists, you gotta work hard to succeed, etc. There is no country that doesnt operate like Nigeria. You're just too broke to visit. If you did, you will experience it for yourself (unless you also have money). There's no such thing as flocking to western hospitals. Global citizens aka the wealthy - go where the F we want. The world is ours. We treat the planet the way you treat your 4 bedroom house. So miss me with that talk. Like I said. You are broke, from a broke family. You cant have this convo. It is above your intellect and status.
Nigeria has become a bizarre country, lawless, no national security structures, no leadership control of governance . Infact, Somalia is a better governed and structured country than Nigeria ; that's the situation Nigeria is now.
There is a CHRONIC LACK OF ACCOUNTABILITY in Nigeria. In fact in Africa in general. Not just in security but in all regard.
This is the real issue. How can you have huge budgets, security agencies, technology and many other things yet continue to suffer this level if mind-boggling attacks? It is quite befuddling!
Washington DC guy has no clue what he’s talking about and is completely out of his depth. Just a liberal political shill.
Nigerian Government and Army Are Behind All Those Attacks.
Islam is a very very peaceful
Islam
@JimLahey87 Actually Lots of Victims of Attacks and Summary Executions in Nigeria Are Muslim.
James and oluwale are correct in thier analysis
They are killing for Islam
Shame 😢
Oluwale hit the nail on the head
This is embarrassing and disgusting.... Nigeria's government is a huge JOKE
The issue with insecurity in Nigeria is beyond terrorism and kidnapping, the military and the police would have been able to crush all terrorists elements in the country and bring peace and order in the Nigerian Society. Nigeria economy is also strong enough to fund the security sector adequately to procure modern equipments that will aid security forces to combat terrorism and bring it to an end. In recent years we can see hi figures of billions of dollars that have been allocated for procuring arms ammunitions and security equipments but the big issue is corruption, instead of using the money top political class and top security officers team up to steal the money and put it into their personal use there by leaving Frontline officers with no adequate equipments to go offensive on these terrorists. That is why the larger Nigeria Society today are helpless and always die in the hands of these insurgents in the course of attacks by the terrorists. Another issue is that there is no motivation for the officers in Frontline to fight to the best of their ability because in the case of Injuries these front line officers are always neglected and in the case of death their families are left to turn to Beggars.
The insurgents or terrorists in Nigeria is sponsored and financed by political figures or governments in the area where they are active for their own benefits, which is the simple reason it has been on for decades. If the government or influential figures are not behind it, they ought to have been flushed out long ago, but they thrive and have expanded and even added more groups. A militia or insurgents cannot be powerful than the government except they are aided by the same government or external force. These people and driven by sick ideology which emboldens them to believe that every other persons are sub-humans or do not deserve to exist. It is going to be endless unless the source is tackled.
Nigeria government useless
The guy in the USA is not current. We need the USA for intellegence
For me, as a Nigerian 🇳🇬 I feel a shame.
This is too much. President please help.
The president is an Islamic jihadi
Nigeria security isnot 8s no wirse than it was ladt few years but the coverage of it increased and created a false naratives and increased insecurity image and the us involvement only make it worse.
Innocent defenseless villagers are always the victims or who bears the brunt of their attacks which does not generate much response from the shameless and corrupt authority. Now they have deployed soldiers after countless souls have been taken which is just a pretense that we are on it, then later calls the soldiers back to base and the cycle of violence continues.
This attacker are using the style of Hams
Yup, Boko Haram and Hamas (along with HTS and Houthis) are all the same coin, though different sides of it.
The prevailing insecurity in Nigeria transcends the oft-cited tribal and religious narratives. Rather, it is deeply entrenched in the pervasive corruption that plains the political landscape. I'm willing to share my thoughts on this critical issue with Al Jazeera if given the opportunity 🌍. The who word needs to know exactly what is going on.
Nigeria government are kleptomanias....we plead with them if they want to steal , they atleast steal 30% but use the other for the people but the want 110% like it just too much
The summary of the event , the peple within that communities stated they dont want sharia and the Jihadist version of Islam - that was the reason they where massacred , this is so sad .
Nigerians need religious freedom .
Nigeria is a mess , the government is involved in this terrorism , they took their families out of Nigeria so they dont care about the people all they care about is the looting. NO of their families is in nigeria , i want d foreign body to take over the government. The judge , house of representatives and president is all corrupt
Deliberate de-stabalization. They leave oil-rich nigeria and flood into europe.
Aljazeera will go look for people who align with their sadistic agendas and invite them to discussions so it seems like it’s the people speaking their minds
Baba we are too many for them to succeed at those their primitive games. We know the level. After all their brightest minds in their country, are still the same us so how far oyibo? They will talk and tire and go and sleep after.
Washington DC guy knows nothing
Terrorism in the northern Nigeria is funded by some Arab countries.
These are not the true realities on ground. There’s nothing like farmers headers grabbling for lands, what is happening in Nigeria is a pure islamic jihad
Divide Nigeria now, and save many life.
More delay, more waste of Christians life
Sokoto Caliphate needs to be officially declared as a terrorist organisation and Sultan of Sokoto needs to arrested immediate.
APC! Tinubu on your mandate we shall stand!!…
Nigeria shouldn't have been one country, but British created Nigeria for their selfish interest not minding the danger of putting different people with different religions and different ideologies together, Now you see the outcome. Each region should go there separate ways as it were before 1914
I think you're just shouting the Biafra Agenda, otherwise what say you about countries like the USA, Malaysia, India etc.
We are talking about countries multi religions and racial background!
You're also forgetting that we have Muslim and Christians in almost all tribes in Nigeria!
The reason for this bloodshed is Islam!
@msusman5258Nurse!he's out of bed again
And what is wrong with the Biafra agenda? The people say they don’t want to remain in the slaughterhouse. Is it not characteristic of humans to get out of what is clearly, obviously and unmistakably “harm’s way”?
Secondly, your USA analogy is very “accurate.” Are people of one faith in the USA running amok like berserkers, unaliving defenseless citizens at will while the mainstream media and the government tie themselves in knots to deny their obvious ineptitude and undeniable complicity?
It is dispositions like this that make the afghanistaning of Nigeria a certainty. Unfortunately, many still believe there is something left to salvage in the corrosive “unity” forced on contending nations by those who rather have an ungainly giant contraption where retrogression & carnage is assured, than smaller (better administered) independent nations that actually work for the people.
@msusman5258it not about biafra, I'm not biafra bit i want regionalism if we can do it like Britain it fine , we are very different, i dont have any connection with northerns , I'm south south we are very peaceful people but we are tired of this tribalism and religious matter
Nobody had been arrested or disgraced for being involved in terrorism yet the government knows their sponsors.What u guys talking about. Speaking big big grammar. The vice president is a person of particular concern but has the no 2 position. What u guys saying?
What is this man in Washington saying???
I don't even understand that man in D.c this people's are killed because they refuse Sahara Islamic laws
@EmekaOKafor-u8gsimple
He is there to represent American ignorance
What exactly are the Americans doing there, sitting on their helmets? If they are i don't blame them. Not enough military supplies and too much corruption. i can only imagine what the Sahel would look like had the military leaders not steped in: millions driven off their land, thousands murdered, and some real helmet sitting.
Right! blame the Americans
Christians are always been targeted please
Sheikh Gumi and the Sultan of Sokoto are to be held responsible. But no one would want to dive into that. They're the brains behind the insecurity in North West and North Central.
@st.randymich8424 are you aware gumi served in the army🪖 & brought his kids in there as well
As a Nigerian 🇳🇬 all I can say is that my country is a failed state, the government is complicit in this atrocities committed by most of this arm groups especially the Bandits and killer Herdsmen in the middle Belt, South West and Northwest Nigeria 🇳🇬
Some African Americans say Donald Trump want to create crisis in Nigeria. My question is that before Donald Trumps interventions in the persecution of Christians in Nigeria, what efforts have African Americans made to raise awareness about killings in Nigeria. No matter what haters of Trump say, persecuted people in Nigeria see Donald Trump as a savior. They don’t care about what those who criticize Trump think.
Nigeria needs to be divided so every region can govern itself or establish a state police. These are the only two solutions.
Call them by their name Islamic terrorists groups