As President Bola marked his second year in office on Thursday, May 29, 2025, a report by Amnesty International (AI) revealed that gunmen killed at least 10,217 persons in attacks in Benue, Edo, Katsina, Kebbi, Plateau, Sokoto, and Zamfara states between 2023 and 2025.

The director of Amnesty International Nigeria, Mr Isa Sanusi, disclosed this in a statement.

“Today (Thursday, May 29, 2025) marks exactly two years since President Bola Tinubu assumed office with a promise to enhance security. Instead, things have only gotten worse, as the authorities continue to fail to protect the rights to life, physical integrity, liberty, and the security of tens of thousands of people across the country.

“President Tinubu must fulfill his promises to Nigerians and urgently address the resurgence of the nation’s endemic security crisis. The recent escalation of attacks by Boko Haram and other armed groups shows that the security measures implemented by President Tinubu’s government are simply not working,” Sanusi said.

He alleged that in the two years since Tinubu became president, new armed groups have emerged, including Lakurawa in Sokoto and Kebbi State, and Mamuda in Kwara State, while hundreds of villages have been sacked by gunmen in Benue, Borno, Katsina, Sokoto, Plateau, and Zamfara.

“Since 29 May 2023, hundreds of people have been killed in rural areas where, our research since 2020 shows, a total absence of governance has given gunmen and criminal groups a free hand to commit atrocities. Our investigation verified the killing of over 294 people in Katsina state and documented the abduction of 306 people, mostly women and girls, between May 2023 to May 2025,” he said.

Sanusi said in Zamfara state, attacks occur daily, with multiple attacks sometimes taking place in a single day.

“In the last two years, over 273 people have been killed and 467 people abducted. Since the beginning of the security crisis, bandits have sacked 638 villages, while 725 villages are under the control of bandits, across 13 local governments of Zamfara State.

“Maru local government area also witnessed escalating attacks, including one on a mining site at Gobirawar Chali on 24 April 2025, in which over 20 miners were killed. The emergence of Lakurawa opened a new frontier of bloodshed in Kebbi State, where at least 70 people were killed in 22 attacks,” he said.

Sanusi noted that the attacks in Benue and Plateau States were particularly vicious.

“During the 3 April attack on Bokkos local government of Plateau state, many people, including children and entire families, were brutally killed. In Benue state, the gunmen ensured that after killing people, they also destroyed boreholes, clinics, and schools.

“During the attacks on communities in Ukum and Logo local government, Amnesty International gathered evidence that grain reserves and places of worship were also destroyed.

“Amnesty International’s findings show that all 23 local government areas of Benue state suffered such attacks, with more frequent attacks on Ukum, Logo, Katsina-Ala, Gwer West, Gwer East, Apa, and Agatu local government areas. Over 200 villages have been sacked by gunmen across Benue State.

“These attacks have triggered a wave of displacement with 450,000 people documented as internally displaced people. In Plateau State, armed herders carried out 38 attacks. Between 27 March and 2 April 2025, coordinated attacks took place against five communities: Daffo, Gwande, Hurti, Manguna, and Ruwi in Bokkos local government.

“In the past two years, 167 rural communities were attacked in Bassa, Barkin Ladi, Bokkos, Jos East, Jos South, Mangu, Riyom, and Wase local government areas. As a result of these attacks, 65,000 people have been internally displaced. Some communities, in both Benue and Plateau, have been displaced more than once, after IDP camps were also attacked,” he said.

He added: “The majority, if not all of those affected by these attacks, are farmers, whose displacement means they can no longer cultivate their farms. The majority of those displaced in Plateau and Katsina states told Amnesty International that they had to resort to begging to survive daily life.

“At Dangulbi district of Zamfara state, farmers have to watch their harvest of sweet potatoes rot because bandits have prevented them from transporting them to the nearest market. These attacks deprive people of their right to life, while the survivors are deprived of their livelihood.

“Between 9 and 11 May, gunmen sacked four villages of Isa local government area of Sokoto state. The affected communities are: Bafarawa, Gebe, Kamarawa, Garin Fadama, and Haruwai. People of these villages are now displaced and struggle to feed themselves daily.

“Residents of villages in Zamfara, Sokoto, and Katsina States told Amnesty International that gunmen also impose levies on them via phone calls, with the warning that failure to pay by a given deadline will be punished with death.

Meanwhile, the National Counter Terrorism Centre – Office of the National Security Adviser (NCTC – ONSA) has dismissed the AI’s report, several figures and assertions contained in the statement are inconsistent with verified data in possession of the centre.

“The report, in its current form, presents an overly alarming narrative which does not reflect the broader realities on the ground, and which risks misinforming the public, damaging the international image of the country, and inadvertently encouraging terrorists and criminal elements by exaggerating the impact of their atrocities,” he said.

In a statement, the coordinator of the NCTC-ONSA, Maj Gen Adamu Garba Laka, invited AI for a meeting to dissect the report in order to avoid misleading the public.

He said the meeting will provide an opportunity for both parties to review the contents of the report, reconcile discrepancies, and discuss ongoing security efforts as well as challenges faced in the protection of lives and property across the country.

“While we recognise and value the role of civil society organisations in documenting human rights concerns, such efforts must be pursued with accuracy, objectivity, and a careful understanding of the prevailing national security context. Therefore, we strongly advise that the said report be withheld from publication, pending a thorough engagement to address the evident gaps and potential misinformation contained therein,” he said.