Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
No fewer than 16 foreign terrorists and other suspects have been arrested by the military and other security agencies in separate operations across Nigeria within the last 14 months, a development that has reinforced growing concerns over the infiltration of foreign fighters into the country's insurgency and banditry theatres. The foreigners, some of whom have been convicted and sentenced to death for terrorism, include Pakistanis, Chadians and Nigeriens, according to military sources and media reports compiled by Sunday PUNCH. They were arrested in separate operations across the North-East and North-Central parts of the country between May 2025 and July 2026, underscoring the increasingly transnational nature of Nigeria's security crisis.
On July 12, 2026, troops of Operation Hadin Kai disclosed that a Palestinian Arab identified as Abu Ishaq, said to be ISWAP's overall trainer; a Moroccan Arab identified as Abu Thaiba, assessed as a medical doctor serving within the terrorist network; and another Arab operative whose identity is yet to be established, were among the terrorists who planned a thwarted infiltration into Cross Kauwa, Kukawa Local Government Area of Borno State. In the thwarted attack, the military said it killed many high-profile terrorists, including a Syrian national and an ISWAP commander, Aliyu Zabarmari, while another foreign fighter described as an Arab mercenary remained missing. On July 19, 2026, troops of the 115 Task Force Battalion apprehended an alleged foreign spy, Abubakar Zen, who claimed to be a citizen of the Niger Republic, at Mallam Fatori in Abadam LGA of Borno State.
In a related development, troops of Sector 4, Operation Hadin Kai, arrested a 32-year-old Sudanese national, Musa Fashir, suspected to be a foreign terrorist fighter and collaborator, alongside a 36-year-old woman who claimed to be an illegal immigrant from the Republic of Ghana, during a security operation in Lassa, Dille General Area of Askira/Uba Local Government Area of Borno State. Preliminary intelligence indicates that the Sudanese suspect has established links with terrorist elements operating in the region, while the circumstances surrounding the woman's presence in the area and the authenticity of her claims are currently under investigation. The suspects remain in military custody, undergoing preliminary profiling and interrogation to determine the full extent of their activities and possible links to terrorist organisations or transnational criminal networks.
Commenting on the matter, a retired military officer told Sunday PUNCH that the reported presence of foreign combat trainers and medical specialists suggested that the insurgency might increasingly be drawing on expertise from outside the region. He said the criminal elements were strengthening the capacity of local terrorist cells to survive military pressure and adapt to new counterterrorism strategies, adding that the challenge now extends beyond tracking individual fighters. Security analysts have described the arrests as a significant breakthrough that validates long-held intelligence assessments regarding the presence of foreign nationals within terrorist ranks, and it is expected to provide deeper insight into the structure and external support networks of terrorist organisations operating across the Lake Chad region.
The arrests have also prompted fresh calls for stronger border control measures. When contacted for comment on the porous borders, the spokesperson for the Nigeria Immigration Service said the agency was working closely with the military and other security agencies to strengthen border security and prevent the movement of terrorists and other irregular migrants into the country. He noted that Nigeria's geographical location, sharing borders with the Benin Republic, Niger, Chad and Cameroon, naturally placed considerable pressure on the country's borders and created the need for sustained surveillance and inter-agency cooperation. The arrests have further intensified the debate over Nigeria's border security, with experts and families of victims of terrorism demanding total border closure as a response to what they describe as an alarming trend of foreign infiltration. The Nigerian government has confirmed that foreign nationals have been arrested in connection with the country's escalating security crisis, as cross-border terrorism from the Sahel region intensifies.
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