Nigeria witnessed a wave of lethal terrorist assaults in 2025, with violence spreading throughout a number of areas and drawing worldwide consideration.
The violence escalated throughout a number of areas: insurgency intensified within the North-East, banditry surged within the North-West and North-Central, whereas communal clashes elevated within the Center Belt and elements of the South-South.
A few of the assaults attracted world scrutiny, prompting intervention from U.S. President Donald Trump, who subsequently positioned Nigeria on the checklist of International locations of Specific Concern.
Months after the designation, the US launched air strikes in opposition to two terrorist enclaves in Bauni forest in Tangaza Native Authorities Space of Sokoto State.
Terror Assaults In Nigeria 2025
Whereas the strikes might have been one of the vital pronounced occasions in Nigeria within the passing 12 months, the nation recorded some chilling terror assaults in 2025.
Beneath is an inventory of a few of the main assaults recorded throughout the nation throughout the 12 months:
Papiri College Mass Kidnapping Sparks Outrage
Within the early hours of Friday, November 21, 2025, gunmen stormed St. Mary’s Catholic College in Papiri, Niger State, abducting college students and lecturers.
The assault shortly grew to become considered one of Nigeria’s largest mass college kidnappings in latest historical past, sparking nationwide outrage and concern over college security.
Instantly, the Catholic Diocese performed an preliminary headcount, which confirmed that 315 individuals had been unaccounted for.
Nonetheless, a lot later, church authorities defined that discrepancies had been recorded throughout the preliminary headcount, because the state of affairs was chaotic. Many pupils reportedly fled into close by bushes throughout the assault, whereas some dad and mom weren’t current throughout the first stage of verification.
By Sunday, November 23, it was confirmed that fifty individuals had escaped from their captors and reunited with their dad and mom, lowering the variety of lacking individuals to 265. Verification continued within the days that adopted to reconcile the figures.
A second and closing verification, carried out in collaboration with the Mother and father–Academics Affiliation (PTA), later established that an additional 35 individuals had both not been kidnapped or had escaped earlier with out fast affirmation. This introduced readability to the conflicting figures that emerged within the aftermath of the assault.
“In abstract, out of the preliminary 315 individuals reported lacking, 85 had been confirmed to have both escaped or not been kidnapped, bringing the verified complete variety of kidnapped individuals to 230,” the Diocese stated.
On December 7, 2025, the Federal Authorities secured the discharge of 100 of the kidnapped kids, and later within the month, a further 130 victims had been freed, bringing the full variety of launched abductees to 230, consistent with the Diocese’s verified figures.
The attackers had been described as gunmen linked to armed teams working in northern Nigeria, sometimes called bandits with terror-linked affiliations.
Gunmen Strike Yelwata
Niger was not the one state within the area to expertise safety challenges within the outgoing 12 months. Benue additionally had its fair proportion of assaults, which led to a number of folks being killed and hundreds being displaced.
On June 13, armed herdsmen stormed the Yelwata group in Guma Native Authorities Space of the North-Central area, unleashing a lethal assault.
A lot of these focused had been internally displaced individuals (IDPs) who had sought refuge locally after fleeing earlier violence in neighbouring areas.
Casualty figures from the incident diverse, however between 100 and 200 civilians, together with ladies and kids.
The assault additionally triggered a significant humanitarian disaster, with greater than 3,000 residents displaced after houses had been set ablaze and enormous elements of the settlement had been destroyed.
In response, the Federal Authorities ordered fast safety deployments to Benue State, whereas President Bola Tinubu directed the arrest of these accountable.
By June 18, the president visited surviving victims of the bloodbath, pledging help and renewed safety measures for the world.
Nonetheless, Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Employees (CDS), Basic Christopher Musa, later disclosed that troops had been current in Yelwata on the day of the assault however had been misled into leaving the group by a false terror alert from a neighbouring city.
On June 24, the Inspector Basic of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, introduced the arrest of 26 suspects believed to be the masterminds of the Yelwata killings.
Regardless of these actions, violence endured within the space. On August 11, 2025, suspected herdsmen shot three folks lifeless whereas they had been engaged on their farms. Three others had been critically injured.
Information of the early-morning assault sparked protests by ladies locally, who accused troopers of failing to reply promptly, forcing youths and law enforcement officials to mobilise to repel the gunmen.
Months after the bloodbath, issues over restoration and rebuilding stay unresolved. The President of Mzough U Tiv UK (MUTUK), Victor Aleva, lamented that no significant efforts had been made to rebuild Yelwata following the June assault, which he stated claimed over 200 lives.
Aleva famous that regardless of Tinubu’s go to, the group stays in ruins, deepening frustration amongst survivors and displaced residents.
Plateau Bloodbath — Excessive-Casualty Neighborhood Assaults
Elsewhere within the nation, no fewer than 100 residents had been killed in a collection of lethal assaults throughout Plateau in 2025, as violence linked to armed teams and communal militias continued to ravage communities within the state.
In early April, coordinated assaults on a number of communities in Bokkos Native Authorities Space left no less than 52 folks lifeless. Villages together with Hurti, Ruwi, Manguna, and Daffo had been affected, with houses razed and hundreds of residents compelled to flee.
One other main assault was recorded on April 14, when gunmen stormed the Zike group in Kimakpa, Kwall District of Bassa Native Authorities Space, killing over 51 residents and setting homes ablaze as villagers fled for security.
The violence continued into June, when suspected herdsmen attacked Juwan and Manja communities in Bokkos and Mangu Native Authorities Areas, killing 13 folks, largely kids and the aged, and destroying houses.
By mid-year, repeated assaults had triggered widespread displacement and public outrage, prompting peace protests throughout Plateau State and robust condemnation from the state authorities, which described the killings as sponsored and genocidal.
In September, the Plateau State Authorities obtained the report of a high-powered fact-finding committee set as much as examine the persistent violence.
Presenting the report in Jos, the committee’s chairman, Main Basic Rogers Nicholas (rtd.), stated greater than 420 communities had been attacked between 2001 and 2025, main to almost 12,000 deaths and the displacement of hundreds of residents.
Armed Males Assault Borno
Within the North-East, gunmen linked to Boko Haram launched coordinated strikes on Darajamal, Bama, and Monguno areas of Borno State, killing no less than 63 folks, together with 58 civilians and 5 troopers.
The deadliest assault occurred in Daral-Jamal, a group positioned alongside the Bama–Banki highway within the Sambisa Forest, the place suspected Boko Haram fighters struck on Friday evening.
Through the assault, the assailants burned greater than 20 homes, in addition to automobiles, foodstuffs, and different valuables belonging to resettled Internally Displaced Individuals (IDPs).
Residents stated the gunmen overran the group, setting houses ablaze and abducting ladies and ladies, whereas participating safety forces within the space.
5 troopers and dozens of civilians had been confirmed killed within the violence, underscoring the continued risk posed by insurgents within the area.
The United Nations condemned the killings, describing the assault as a grave violation of worldwide humanitarian regulation and calling for higher safety of civilians in conflict-affected communities throughout Borno State.
Insecurity: Nigerians Expectant
Regardless of these challenges, authorities have vowed to crack down on the masterminds. Tinubu has reshuffled the safety structure and in addition taken a raft of measures to deal with Nigeria’s safety points.
With the brand new 12 months on the horizon, Nigerians count on the measures to start yielding extra fruits and safer communities in the long term.
The submit Lives Lost, Communities Shattered: Nigeria’s Deadliest Attacks Of 2025 appeared first on Channels Television.
