In a rare bipartisan move, U.S. lawmakers have begun laying the groundwork for targeted sanctions against Nigerian officials and entities they believe have enabled or ignored years of extremist violence—an escalation that could reshape the country’s political and security landscape.
At the centre of the storm: new U.S. congressional revelations that the Lakawura militant network operating in northern Nigeria is affiliated with al-Qaida, and was initially invited into the country by northern elites to act as informal protection forces—a move that spiralled into widespread terror affecting even the communities that empowered them.
The developments have collided with President Bola Tinubu’s recent declaration of a national security emergency, a step critics say comes “years too late” and only after sustained American pressure.
These revelations and more emerged from a recent Laolu Akande’s show Inside Sources, which was broadcast on Channels TV.
Terrorism With an Ethno-Religious Core
According to U.S.-based human rights advocate Emmanuel Ogebe, who briefed Congress last week, Nigeria’s conflict is being distorted by political rhetoric but is well-documented in American intelligence.
The violence, he said, is not a blanket Muslim-versus-Christian conflict, but ethno-religious extremism concentrated within two groups:
- Boko Haram, rooted in the Kanuri population
- Fulani militant networks active across the north-central and northwest
Other Muslim groups—including Hausa, Igala, and Yoruba (Southwest) Muslims—“are not involved in terrorism,” Ogebe said. Moderate Muslim communities have themselves suffered attacks.
The U.S. committee statement he referenced calls for visa bans, asset freezes, and Magnitsky-style sanctions on individuals tied to “egregious religious freedom violations.” Some names have already surfaced in Washington, though not yet publicly.
Nigeria’s Weak Response Under Scrutiny
Multiple panellists on the Inside Sources programme agreed that Nigeria has failed to prosecute major terror actors for nearly two decades.
“Fifteen years into this insurgency, not one principal actor has been brought to justice,” said policy strategist Baba Yusuf, who lost a family member to Boko Haram and rejects attempts to frame the crisis as a war between religions.
There are isolated convictions — such as a Boko Haram operative sentenced to life over an attack on a Kaduna media office — but witnesses say most cases collapse because citizens fear testifying and because senior military officers accused of negligence or sabotage rarely face consequences.
A U.S. Sanctions List Is Coming
Ogebe confirmed that U.S. officials have already requested names for a sanctions list, and that politically exposed Nigerians, senior security officers, and even prospective ambassadors may be affected.
“If certain nominees arrive in Washington, they will be blocked,” he said.
Congressman Chris Smith reportedly asked Nigeria’s delegation for evidence of prosecutions or justice for victims. According to sources at the hearing, “the answers were insufficient.”
U.S. Leverage Has Grown, And Nigeria Knows It
Nigeria’s strategic position has shifted sharply:
The country, once a major crude supplier to the U.S., now imports American oil, reducing U.S. dependence and weakening Abuja’s leverage.
“Nigeria needs the U.S. far more than the U.S. needs Nigeria now,” one analyst said at the hearing.
Political scientist Prof. Mojúbàolú Okome was blunt:
“America has power. Nigeria does not. It is embarrassing that Nigerian lives only seem to matter to Nigerian officials when the U.S. applies pressure.”
She warned, however, that foreign intervention comes with its own costs. “External actors pursue their own interests. Nigerians must solve Nigerian problems.”
A Potential Turning Point — Or More Drift
For now, Washington’s moves have triggered unusual alarm among Nigeria’s political class—many of whom have banked assets or families abroad.
Whether this fear leads to real reform or merely another cycle of empty declarations remains unclear.
But one fact is increasingly hard to dispute:
Nigeria’s security crisis is now an international issue — and the U.S. is preparing to act.
