Learn How To Make Money From Home Using Your Smartphone In 2025
By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
AfricaNews360AfricaNews360
  • Politics
    PoliticsShow More
    The future is African – Ghana President declares at UN Assembly
    September 26, 2025
    Burkina Faso to ‘street honour’ late Ghanaian President Jerry John Rawlings
    May 19, 2025
    Burkina Faso honours late president Thomas Sankara with memorial park
    May 19, 2025
    Nigeria Presidency refutes Catholic leaders’ criticism of economic hardship
    March 11, 2025
    Ghana’s President Mahama strengthens ties with Mali during Bamako visit
    March 10, 2025
  • Business
    BusinessShow More
    Ghana’s President Mahama seeks investment partnerships during Singapore visit
    August 25, 2025
    Ghana’s Tourism Minister commends Emirates at grand opening of Travel Store
    May 15, 2025
    Burkina Faso strengthens Russian ties with new mining licence
    April 27, 2025
    Ghana Bauxite Company targets 6 million tonnes production by end of 2025
    April 7, 2025
    Ghana to launch ‘River Guards’ program to combat environmental Impact of illegal mining
    March 17, 2025
  • Showbiz
    ShowbizShow More
    Davido releases ’10 Kilo’ Music Video
    August 13, 2025
    Nigerian Star Davido’s Foundation supports 500 orphanages in annual Charity drive
    February 13, 2025
    Nigerian president Tinubu celebrates Nollywood icon Nkem Owoh ‘Osuofia’ at 70
    February 8, 2025
    Burkina Faso’s Bissa music sensation Eunice Goula drops new Banger ‘Mariage’
    September 25, 2024
    Kenya’s president hosts national music festival
    August 16, 2024
  • Sports
    SportsShow More
    Ghana name squad for final World Cup qualifiers against Central African Republic and Comoros
    October 2, 2025
    Fifa sanctions SAFA with 3-0 defeat to Lesotho and £7,000 fine following Teboho Mokoena breach
    September 30, 2025
    Botswana declares public holiday after winning gold medal
    September 22, 2025
    Ghana smashes national record to reach 4x100m final at World Championships
    September 20, 2025
    Nigeria held to frustrating draw by South Africa in World Cup qualifier
    September 9, 2025
  • Biographies
    BiographiesShow More
    Michael Gallup Bio, Age, Net Worth, Height, Parents, Siblings, Wife, Children
    July 25, 2024
  • Columns
    ColumnsShow More
    Ghana Government does not subsidize Hajj Pilgrims: Debunking the myth with facts
    March 7, 2025
    Full Speech: South African president’s address at first G20 Foreign Ministers’ meeting 2025
    February 22, 2025
    Ing. Abdullah Mohammed Billey: The Ghanaian road expert victimised for political reasons by the ousted Government
    February 3, 2025
    Ghana President Mahama’s speech at Africa Prosperity Dialogues 2025
    February 2, 2025
    An American opinion on the impending NDC Government structure
    December 17, 2024
  • Travel
    TravelShow More
    Ghana’s Tourism Minister commends Emirates at grand opening of Travel Store
    May 15, 2025
    Thousands of Ethiopian diaspora heed PM’s call to ‘come home’
    May 2, 2024
    Malawi and Ghana sign visa waiver agreement to enhance bilateral ties
    March 21, 2024
    Ghana signs visa waiver agreement with Bahamas
    February 22, 2024
    Malawi scrapes visa restrictions for 79 countries
    February 9, 2024
  • Editorial
    EditorialShow More
    FEATURE: Kigali City- A glittering jewel of Africa
    September 2, 2023
    All eyes on INEC as Nigeria decides
    February 26, 2023
    Feed Africa Summit: Continent Plans to Achieve Zero Hunger by 2030
    January 25, 2023
    Africa must speak with one voice at COP27
    November 8, 2022
    Nigerian headteacher sentenced to death after pupil’s murder
    July 28, 2022
  • World
    WorldShow More
    Robert Prevost
    American prelate Robert Prevost elected New Pope
    May 9, 2025
    Rwanda cuts diplomatic ties with Belgium amid Congo conflict tensions
    March 17, 2025
    ICC issues arrest warrants for Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu, Ibrahim Al-Masri
    November 21, 2024
    Voting underway in US as Donald Trump faces Kamala Harris for presidency
    November 5, 2024
    Biden directs US forces to aid Israel’s defence against Iran
    October 2, 2024
Reading: Jihadists and bandits are cooperating. Why this is bad news for Nigeria
Share
Notification Show More
Latest News
Newly qualified radiographer kidnapped in Nigeria
October 2, 2025
Nigeria’s anti-trafficking agency rescues 24 in major airport operation
October 2, 2025
Ghana name squad for final World Cup qualifiers against Central African Republic and Comoros
October 2, 2025
Fifa sanctions SAFA with 3-0 defeat to Lesotho and £7,000 fine following Teboho Mokoena breach
September 30, 2025
The future is African – Ghana President declares at UN Assembly
September 26, 2025
Aa
AfricaNews360AfricaNews360
Aa
  • Technology
  • Science
  • Education
  • Health
Search
  • Topics
    • Business
    • Columns
    • Gossip
    • News
    • Politics
    • Showbiz
    • Fashion
    • Climate
    • World
    • Videos
Have an existing account? Sign In
Follow US
AfricaNews360 > Columns > Jihadists and bandits are cooperating. Why this is bad news for Nigeria
Columns

Jihadists and bandits are cooperating. Why this is bad news for Nigeria

Posted Africanews360 December 6, 2022 8 Min Read
Updated 2022/12/06 at 10:51 PM
Residents fleeing a village in Plateau State, north central Nigeria, after an attack by armed bandits. Photo by AFP via Getty Images
SHARE

The Nigerian state has come under severe security stress in recent times. It has faced multiple national security threats: jihadist groups in the north-east; armed bandits in the north-west; militia secessionists in the south-east; and militancy in the south-south.

Thousands of people have died or been displaced.

Hardly a day goes by without reports of kidnappings for ransom, thefts, cattle rustling or sexual violence by armed bandits in the troubled north-west region.

Armed bandits have become so emboldened as to stage highway attacks and set ambushes against the country’s security forces. Concern is increasing about the threat they pose to peace and security in Nigeria.

Learn How To Make Money Online Using Your Smartphone In 2025

Much has been written about this banditry, including its linkages to the country’s farmer-herder crisis – the tensions over grazing for livestock. But there appears to be a new trend in the bandits’ way of operating which warrants attention.

My previous research had explored the factors that non-state actors rely on to spread violence in Nigeria and across the Sahel region: overty, inequality, high unemployment and illiteracy rates, weak institutions and poor governance, to mention a few. Based on this work, I argue that the interests of bandits and jihadists are converging. This poses a formidable threat to Nigeria’s national security.

The large number of bandits offers a significant pool of potential fighters for jihadists.

Why the bandit threat is real

Bandits are mostly known for their pursuit of economic opportunism. They are mostly interested in enriching themselves rather than taking other kinds of power.

Jihadist groups such as Boko Haram and the Islamic State in West Africa Province are rather driven by political ideology.

RECOMMENDED FOR YOU  Nigeria: Security Officers for Election to take Oath of Loyalty, Neutrality

But armed bandits have demonstrated a willingness to work alongside jihadists in the north-west. The government has said this may have been the case in the attack on an Abuja-Kaduna bound train. More than 160 commuters were abducted in a jihadi-style attack.

There have also been records that point to arms trading between bandits and terrorists in Nigeria.

The jihadist group Ansaru, which broke away from Boko Haram in 2012, has recently re-emerged. This proscribed group is known for its deadly attacks on the United Nations headquarters in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, in 2013.

The Al-Qaeda affiliated group now mostly operates within Birnin Gwari, a local government area in north-west Nigeria’s Kaduna state. The group has also sought the cooperation of armed bandits in the pursuit of its goals and objectives, which it claims are to protect Muslims across Africa by fighting against the Nigerian government and international interests.

Though there have been occasional clashes between bandits and jihadists, the quest for strategic relevance among jihadist groups implies a willingness to form new alliances and bolster existing ones. Bandits could confer strategic relevance on jihadists by providing them with the manpower and economic resources required in the pursuit of their goals.

The Nigerian military’s Operations Hadarin Daji and Thunderstrike inflicted operational defeats on the jihadists. They have since embarked on an intensified effort to recruit fighters into their fold, including child soldiers.

Numbering over 30,000 across the northern region, armed bandits could fill the void.

An attractive option

Armed bandits and jihadists in Nigeria have a common enemy – the Nigerian security forces.

Armed bandits are interested in exploiting governance gaps.

RECOMMENDED FOR YOU  Nigeria ranks 150, scores 24 on corruption index 

The jihadists’ objective is to establish sharia rule and an Islamic caliphate. The groups differ among themselves on how exactly to achieve this. This explains the internal rift within Boko Haram which led to the emergence of ISWAP in 2015. In May 2021, ISWAP staged an assault on Boko Haram’s leader Abubakar Shekau, resulting in his death.

What they have in common however is a hierarchical leadership structure from which they derive their instructions. ISWAP has ties with the Islamic State, and Ansaru and Boko Haram have ties with Al-Qaeda.

The absence of such external leadership structures for armed bandits means it might be difficult to achieve an ironclad partnership between them and jihadists in the long run.

As armed bandits become more assertive, however, they might adopt a political ideology. This is evident from their recent attack on an immigration base and their attempted attack for the second time on the Nigerian Defence Academy – both of which represent institutions of the state. A potential trigger for this is the proscription of armed bandits as terrorists by the federal government.

Armed bandits could potentially formalise whatever existing strategic partnerships they have with jihadist groups such as Ansaru, given its proximity to them, if they resolve their recurring differences.

Doing so would guarantee steady sources of funds and arms for both armed non-state actors.

A second trigger could be the effect of ransom payments to kidnappers being made illegal. The Nigerian government recently enacted this law.

As the law takes effect, families of kidnapped victims will be less willing to pay ransom – the major financial resource for armed bandits. Bandits could potentially become desperate and set aside their differences with jihadists, choosing to partner with them.

RECOMMENDED FOR YOU  WHO official: Ghana, Nigeria did not jump the gun on malaria vaccine approval

A synergy between armed bandits and jihadists would lead to more civilian deaths, displacement, and destruction of property.

It could attract more foreign terrorist fighters, too, given Nigeria’s porous borders, who would be keen on recruiting combat-ready terrorists for armed conflict across the Lake Chad Basin and Sahel regions.

This also has serious implications for external state actors such as the United States, France and the European Union in the long run. That’s because the activities of terrorists in the region could jeopardise their economic interests.

What needs to be done

To avert this, the federal government of Nigeria must act fast. It must intensify covert action to disrupt the potential consolidation of partnerships between armed bandits and jihadist groups.

In doing so, it must however be careful not to rely solely on the use of force, which tends to result in the over-militarisation of an already complex issue. It ignores the triggers and drivers of terrorism and has the unintended effect of terrorists becoming adaptive over time.

Efforts must be directed at addressing underlying socio-economic, environmental and political root causes of the country’s farmer-herder crisis, which contributes to the proliferation of small arms and light weapons across the region.

Lastly, poor governance must be replaced with people-centric governance, given that the former has contributed to the emergence of both jihadism and “banditism” across Nigeria.

Folahanmi Aina, Doctoral Candidate in Leadership Studies, King’s College London

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

RSS EDITORS’ SUGGESTIONS

  • 2026 FIFA WCQ: Sports Minister Kofi Adams urges Black Stars to defeat Comoros
  • 2026 FIFA WCQ: Black Stars to set up camp in Morocco ahead of Central African Republic clash
  • VIDEO: Ghanaian winger Emmanuel Addai scores in Qarabağ Champions League 2-0 win over Copenhagen
  • Sports Minister Kofi Adams urges Black Stars to seal World Cup spot with victory over Comoros
  • “The target is to qualify for the World Cup” – Black Starlets coach Narteh Ogum after AFCON qualification
TAGGED: Bandits, jihadists, Nigeria
Africanews360 December 6, 2022
Share this Article
Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Whatsapp LinkedIn Telegram Email Print
Previous Article Naomi Campbell Honors Queen Elizabeth, Bella Hadid Wins Model Of The Year At Fashion Awards 2022
Next Article More South Africans are smoking – higher taxes and stronger law enforcement are needed
Leave a comment Leave a comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Latest on AfricaNews360

  • Newly qualified radiographer kidnapped in Nigeria
  • Nigeria’s anti-trafficking agency rescues 24 in major airport operation
  • Ghana name squad for final World Cup qualifiers against Central African Republic and Comoros
  • Fifa sanctions SAFA with 3-0 defeat to Lesotho and £7,000 fine following Teboho Mokoena breach
  • The future is African – Ghana President declares at UN Assembly

More recommendations for you

  • 2026 FIFA WCQ: Otto Addo names Black Stars squad for CAR, Comoros games
  • 2026 FIFA WCQ: Sports Minister Kofi Adams urges Black Stars to defeat Comoros
  • 2026 FIFA WCQ: Black Stars to set up camp in Morocco ahead of Central African Republic clash
  • VIDEO: Ghanaian winger Emmanuel Addai scores in Qarabağ Champions League 2-0 win over Copenhagen
  • Sports Minister Kofi Adams urges Black Stars to seal World Cup spot with victory over Comoros

You Might Also Like

News

Newly qualified radiographer kidnapped in Nigeria

October 2, 2025
NewsRights

Nigeria’s anti-trafficking agency rescues 24 in major airport operation

October 2, 2025
Soccer

Nigeria held to frustrating draw by South Africa in World Cup qualifier

September 9, 2025
Soccer

Nigerian duo shine as Fulham hold Manchester United at Craven Cottage

August 25, 2025
  • Bereavement
  • Debt Management
  • Finance
  • Job Creation
  • Small Business
  • Climate
  • Education
  • Fashion
  • Health
  • Rights
  • Science
  • Sanitation
  • Mobilisation
  • Secondary Education
  • Celebrity News
  • Tertiary Education
  • Culture
  • Security
  • Corruption
  • Creed
  • Athletics
  • Basketball
  • Boxing
  • Formula 1
  • Rugby
  • Soccer
  • Tennis
  • Minning
  • Gaming
  • Technology
AfricaNews360AfricaNews360
Follow US

© 2024 - AfricaNews360 | All rights reserved.

  • About
  • Advertise with us
  • Contact

Removed from reading list

Undo
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Register Lost your password?