The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to declare an all-out, intelligence-driven offensive against terrorists and kidnappers operating from forests across the country, insisting that criminal gangs must no longer be allowed to control any part of Nigeria’s territory.
The rights group said the recent rescue of nine kidnapped victims by a joint security team comprising operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS), Kwara State Forest Guards, local hunters and vigilantes demonstrates that terrorist networks can be dismantled through coordinated intelligence, decisive operations and effective inter-agency collaboration.
In a statement issued on Saturday and signed by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, HURIWA praised the security operatives for the successful operation, describing it as a clear indication that Nigeria possesses the capacity to defeat armed criminal groups when security agencies work in synergy.
While commending the operation, the organisation warned that the success should not overshadow the plight of hundreds of Nigerians still being held hostage by kidnappers in forest camps across the country.
According to HURIWA, the Kwara operation should become a national template for coordinated rescue missions aimed at dismantling terrorist enclaves and freeing every Nigerian still in captivity.
The association lamented that continued attacks on communities, highways, schools and farmlands have created the disturbing impression that heavily armed criminal groups exercise influence over parts of Nigeria’s forests, leaving citizens vulnerable to abductions and violence.
“It is unacceptable that terrorists and kidnappers can establish camps, move victims across forests, negotiate ransoms and continue to threaten innocent Nigerians with little disruption,” the group stated.
HURIWA argued that the persistence of mass kidnappings despite significant government spending on security underscores the need for a comprehensive review of the nation’s security architecture, particularly in intelligence gathering, surveillance, rapid response and operational coordination.
It urged the Federal Government to deploy advanced surveillance technologies, including drones, satellite imagery, artificial intelligence-assisted intelligence analysis, geospatial mapping, aerial reconnaissance platforms and electronic intelligence systems, to detect and neutralise terrorist camps before attacks occur.
The group also called for stronger intelligence-sharing among security agencies and the establishment of unified operational command structures to coordinate simultaneous rescue operations across kidnapping hotspots nationwide.
Beyond military operations, HURIWA stressed the need to dismantle the financial and logistical networks sustaining terrorism. It urged the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission and other relevant agencies to intensify lawful investigations into individuals or groups suspected of financing kidnapping and terrorism.
Expressing concern over reports that many Nigerians remain in captivity in parts of Kwara, Niger, Zamfara, Katsina, Sokoto, Kebbi and Southern Kaduna, the association urged President Tinubu, as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, to convene the nation’s security leadership and launch a sustained nationwide rescue mission involving all relevant security agencies.
HURIWA maintained that such operations should continue until every hostage is rescued, terrorist camps are dismantled and criminal networks are decisively degraded, while ensuring full respect for the rule of law and the protection of civilian lives.
The association warned that every day innocent Nigerians remain in captivity deepens public anxiety, weakens confidence in government institutions and further disrupts economic activities across affected communities.
It therefore urged President Tinubu to make the rescue of all kidnapped Nigerians a national emergency, insisting that the Federal Government must demonstrate the resolve to reclaim every occupied forest and ensure that no terrorist or kidnapping syndicate operates beyond the reach of the law.
President Bola Tinubu
