The Federal Government on Thursday said it secured 1,721 terrorism convictions since the launch of its Mass Trial Programme in October 2017, even as the military and police also reported fresh operational gains against insurgents, kidnappers and other criminal groups across the country.
The figure was disclosed by Mr Zakari Mijinyawa, Director of Legal Services at the Office of the National Security Adviser, ONSA, during a joint security briefing in Abuja by spokespersons of security, defence and law enforcement agencies.
Mijinyawa said the mass trial programme, coordinated by the ONSA, the Federal Ministry of Justice, the judiciary and security agencies, had completed 10 phases of terrorism trials.
He said the first three phases, conducted between 2017 and 2018, recorded 366 convictions, 882 discharges, five acquittals and 61 adjourned cases.
According to him, phases four to eight, held between 2023 and 2025, produced 490 convictions, including cases involving terrorism financing, international crimes, and sexual and gender-based violence.
Mijinyawa said phases nine and 10, conducted in 2026, secured 865 convictions, representing more than half of all terrorism-related convictions recorded under the programme since 2017.
He added that the 2026 convictions exceeded the combined total of 856 convictions secured during the preceding nine years of the programme.
Mijinyawa said the government had also discharged or acquitted defendants in cases where evidence did not establish guilt beyond reasonable doubt, in line with due process and fair trial standards.
He reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to ensuring accountability for terrorism offences while upholding constitutional guarantees of fair trial and the rule of law.
Also speaking at the briefing, the Defence Headquarters said the military neutralised 1,597 terrorists and insurgents and rescued 1,516 kidnapped victims in 14,221 operations conducted nationwide between January and June.
The Director of Defence Information, Maj.-Gen. Samaila Uba, who was represented by Group Capt. Kabiru Ali, said the operations involved coordinated land, air and maritime missions across major security flashpoints in Borno, Yobe, Taraba, Katsina, Kwara, Zamfara, Sokoto, Plateau, Benue, Niger, Oyo and Kaduna states.
He said troops recovered 451 firearms, 16,726 rounds of ammunition, and 161 explosives and improvised explosive devices, denying criminal groups the means to sustain their operations.
According to Uba, troops also rescued 261 kidnapped victims from terrorist enclaves, neutralised 412 Boko Haram and ISWAP fighters, arrested 332 terrorists, and recovered weapons, motorcycles and livestock.
He added that 132 Boko Haram and ISWAP members surrendered during the period due to sustained military pressure, while troops safely detonated 31 improvised explosive devices.
Uba said the military also carried out 33 peacebuilding initiatives, 13 public sensitisation campaigns and 33 stakeholder engagements with traditional and religious leaders to strengthen civil-military relations.
He said the Armed Forces issued 593 press releases, countered 15 cases of misinformation and released 10 public advisories to improve public awareness and strategic communication.
Uba reaffirmed the military’s commitment to sustaining operations against terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, separatist violence and crude oil theft across the country, and urged Nigerians to continue providing timely and actionable intelligence to security agencies.
On its part, the Nigeria Police Force said it had dismantled criminal networks and strengthened intelligence-led policing nationwide during the same period.
Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Iniedu Okokon, said police operations resulted in the arrest of thousands of criminal suspects, the rescue of kidnapped victims, and the recovery of firearms, ammunition and other exhibits across the country.
He said the Force Intelligence Department’s Intelligence Response Team arrested 50 suspects linked to terrorism, kidnapping and armed robbery, recovering 17 rifles, an anti-aircraft launcher and 111 rounds of ammunition.
According to him, police also dismantled a 33-member criminal network involved in terrorism, cattle rustling and violent attacks in Kwara State, and arrested suspects linked to the murder of three police officers in Taraba State.
Okokon said operatives rescued a kidnapped woman and her 12-year-old twin sons during an operation on June 6, neutralised two kidnappers and recovered two firearms.
He added that strengthened border security led to the interception of 181 rounds of ammunition along the Abuja-Kaduna corridor, while collaboration with INTERPOL was enhanced to tackle transnational crimes.
Okokon said police also dismantled a railway vandalism syndicate and recovered about 60 tonnes of vandalised railway materials valued at about N400 million.
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