Seven Boko Haram, ISWAP Commanders Arrested At Airport – FG

The Federal Government has announced the arrest of seven suspected commanders of Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) at Katsina Airport after they returned to Nigeria from the Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.

Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, disclosed the development on Friday shortly after President Bola Tinubu signed the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) Act, 2026, into law at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

According to the minister, the suspects were identified immediately upon their arrival through Nigeria’s integrated identity verification system before being arrested and handed over to the Department of State Services (DSS) for further investigation.

Tunji-Ojo attributed the successful operation to the Federal Government’s ongoing reforms in identity management, which have integrated the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) database with that of the Nigeria Immigration Service as well as global security platforms, including Interpol.

He explained that the integration has eliminated the long-standing problem of isolated government databases, enabling security agencies to detect and monitor high-risk individuals more effectively.

“We inherited a fragmented identity management system where government databases operated independently. Today, our immigration database is fully integrated with NIMC and linked to Interpol’s 24-hour security network,” the minister said.

“It was through this integrated platform that seven known commanders of Boko Haram and ISWAP returning from Mecca were identified at Katsina Airport last Thursday, arrested and handed over to the DSS.”

President Tinubu signed the National Identity Management Commission Act, 2026, during a ceremony attended by top government officials, including Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Benjamin Kalu, Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Lateef Fagbemi, and Director-General of the National Identity Management Commission, Abisoye Coker-Odusote.

Tunji-Ojo described the newly signed legislation as a landmark reform that would significantly strengthen Nigeria’s national identity management architecture and improve coordination among security, intelligence and law enforcement agencies.

According to him, the enhanced identity management framework will play a critical role in combating terrorism, identity theft, financial crimes and other forms of transnational criminal activities.

The minister further disclosed that the reforms have transformed the passport issuance process by making identity verification through the NIMC database a compulsory requirement before any Nigerian passport can be issued.

He noted that the unified identity ecosystem has substantially improved border security and intelligence gathering by enabling security agencies to track and verify the identities of persons of interest across multiple government platforms.

Tunji-Ojo expressed confidence that the strengthened identity management system would continue to enhance national security while supporting the government’s broader efforts to tackle terrorism, organised crime and other emerging security threats across the country.