Again, FG rejects religious framing of Nigeria’s security crisis as terror attacks escalate

The Federal Government on Wednesday dismissed attempts to portray the country’s security crisis as religiously driven, saying terrorists and criminal groups were attacking citizens across all faiths and regions.

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Information Minister Mohammed Idris, in a press briefing in Abuja, said President Bola Tinubu had placed the nation’s security architecture on its highest alert following recent attacks, including the killing of a senior Army General, the abduction of schoolgirls in Kebbi State and the assault on a church in Kwara.

The minister said the President had cancelled his scheduled international engagements, including the G20 meeting in South Africa, to concentrate fully on the security situation.

The military and police have been directed to deploy more personnel to Eruku and the wider Ekiti Local Government Area of Kwara State, with orders to pursue and eliminate violent groups nationwide.

Mr Idris added that rescuing the abducted Kebbi schoolgirls remained an urgent priority.

“President Tinubu has also directed all security agencies to actively pursue, neutralise, and dismantle terrorists and criminal networks across the country,” he said.

He said the Vice President, Kashim Shettima, was already in Birnin Kebbi on the President’s instruction, meeting the state governor, security chiefs, traditional rulers and families of the abducted students.

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The minister described the recent incidents as painful reminders of the threats facing the country but said they had hardened the government’s resolve to dismantle terrorist and criminal networks.

He stressed that efforts to frame the crisis along religious lines were misleading and harmful, noting that the violence had affected Nigerians across multiple communities.

The minister cautioned against efforts to cast the security crisis in religious terms, saying the federal government “categorically refutes any sectarian interpretation” of the situation.

He noted that threats ranging from terrorism to banditry had impacted Nigerians across different faiths and communities.

“In this critical moment, national unity is our most powerful asset,” he said. “We must reject misinformation and division. Our common enemies are terrorists and criminals seeking to destabilise our country.”

ALSO READ: ANALYSIS: Why Kebbi’s school abduction happened, what It reveals about rising insecurity in Nigeria’s North-West

The minister’s comments come amid renewed scrutiny of Nigeria’s insecurity, following longstanding foreign claims that Christians were being specifically targeted.

Nigerian authorities and some religious leaders have repeatedly rejected this framing, pointing out that both Christian and muslim populations have suffered under a crisis driven by terrorism, banditry and competition for resources.

Mr Idris reaffirmed Nigeria’s identity as a multi-faith nation with constitutionally protected freedom of worship. He urged citizens to support ongoing operations aimed at restoring peace and rescuing the abducted students.