Seven suspected Boko Haram, ISWAP commanders arrested returning from hajj

Seven suspected commanders linked to Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province, ISWAP, have been arrested at Katsina Airport after returning from the Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

The Federal Government described the arrests as a major success recorded through Nigeria’s integrated digital identity and security verification system.

Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, disclosed the development on Friday shortly after Bola Ahmed Tinubu signed the National Identity Management Commission, NIMC, Act, 2026, into law.

According to the minister, the suspects were identified and intercepted immediately after arriving in Nigeria through the country’s integrated identity verification platform before being handed over to the Department of State Services, DSS, for further investigation.

Tunji-Ojo explained that the arrests were made possible through the integration of the NIMC database with the Nigeria Immigration Service, NIS, and international security networks, including Interpol.

“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.

“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,” the minister said.

President Tinubu signed the NIMC Act, 2026, at the Presidential Villa in Abuja in the presence of Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Benjamin Kalu, Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Lateef Fagbemi, NIMC Director-General Abisoye Coker-Odusote and other senior government officials.

Tunji-Ojo described the new legislation as a significant reform aimed at strengthening the harmonisation of Nigeria’s identity management systems, improving the integrity of the National Identity Number, NIN, and enhancing collaboration among security and intelligence agencies.

He stated that the reforms would improve Nigeria’s ability to combat terrorism, identity fraud, financial crimes and other transnational offences.

The minister further explained that the integration has also improved the passport application process, noting that no Nigerian passport can now be issued without proper identity verification through the NIMC database.

According to him, the reforms have considerably strengthened border security and intelligence operations by providing security agencies with access to a unified identity system capable of tracking high-risk individuals across various government platforms.