Nigeria Arrests Seven Boko Haram, ISWAP Commanders Returning From Hajj — Minister

Nigeria's security agencies have arrested seven suspected commanders of Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) as they returned from the 2026 Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, Interior Minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo has disclosed.

The minister announced the arrests on Friday at the Presidential Villa in Abuja shortly after President Bola Tinubu signed the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) Act 2026 into law.

According to Tunji-Ojo, the suspects were intercepted last Thursday at the Umaru Musa Yar'Adua International Airport in Katsina State while arriving from Mecca and were immediately handed over to the Department of State Services (DSS) for further investigation.

"I'm happy to tell you that even last week, Thursday, seven of the known commanders of Boko Haram and ISWAP, at the point of coming back from Mecca, were arrested in Katsina at the airport and were handed over to the DSS," the minister said.

The minister did not disclose the identities of the suspects or indicate whether they had already been on domestic or international security watchlists before travelling to Saudi Arabia. He also did not state whether formal criminal charges had been filed against them.

Tunji-Ojo attributed the arrests to significant improvements in Nigeria's digital identity and border security architecture, saying government databases are now interconnected in ways that enable security agencies to identify persons of interest more effectively.

He explained that the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) database is now integrated with the Nigeria Immigration Service's records and connected to international security platforms, including Interpol.

According to him, the integration has transformed the country's ability to monitor border movements and detect suspected criminals attempting to enter or leave Nigeria.

"This is only possible because NIMC's ID is already connected with the immigration database and it's already speaking to even the Interpol 24/7, and we have been able to automate this," he said.

The minister said the Tinubu administration inherited fragmented identity management systems that operated independently of one another, limiting intelligence sharing among government agencies.

He noted that obtaining a Nigerian passport is now directly linked to the National Identification Number (NIN), unlike in the past when several government databases functioned separately.

"When Mr President came on board, we had a disconnected system within our identity data management system. At that time, getting a passport and getting a driving permit were completely disconnected from our identity database. But today, you can't get a Nigerian passport without pulling data from NIMC," Tunji-Ojo added.

The arrests came as President Tinubu assented to the National Identity Management Commission Act 2026, which repeals the 2007 legislation governing Nigeria's identity management framework.

Government officials say the new law strengthens the legal foundation of Nigeria's digital identity ecosystem and expands NIMC's authority over secure digital identity management.

Under the new legislation, NIMC becomes Nigeria's Root Certification Authority for the National Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) and Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI), providing the legal framework for secure electronic authentication and trusted data exchange across government institutions and authorised private-sector platforms.

Officials believe the reforms will strengthen identity verification, reduce identity fraud, improve border management and enhance coordination among security agencies.

The signing ceremony was attended by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Lateef Fagbemi, Interior Minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, NIMC Director-General Abisoye Coker-Odusote and other senior government officials.

The disclosure is also likely to renew questions about how the suspects were able to undertake the pilgrimage before being intercepted upon their return.

Tunji-Ojo, however, did not indicate whether the suspects travelled on Nigerian passports, how they obtained travel clearance, or whether they were previously on any security watchlists.

The announcement also comes days after allegations surfaced that the Katsina State Government sponsored Hajj pilgrimages for some bandit leaders. The state government has strongly denied the allegations, describing them as false and politically motivated.

The minister did not link the seven suspects arrested at Katsina airport to those allegations or suggest they were among any government-sponsored pilgrims.

As of Friday evening, neither the Department of State Services nor the Nigeria Immigration Service had released additional details on the identities of the suspects or the specific offences they are expected to face.

The federal government says the arrests demonstrate how Nigeria's increasingly integrated digital identity and border management systems are strengthening counterterrorism operations and improving the country's ability to identify and intercept suspected terrorists at its entry points.