Almost 400 people in Nigeria sentenced over ties to Islamist militants. 18 hours earlier. Farouk Chothia. Getty Images / Anadolu. In Nigeria, nearly 400 individuals have received sentences for connections to militant Islamic groups after mass trials. The convicts, tied to Boko Haram or its rival splinter group, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), were handed terms from five years to life in prison. These trials occurred amid heavy government pressure to tackle escalating insecurity in Africa’s most populous nation. Security forces are fighting various armed factions, including militant Islamists, separatists, and kidnapping-for-ransom gangs. Boko Haram started an insurgency in the northeast in 2009, which has killed tens of thousands and displaced over two million people, according to aid organizations. On Wednesday, the US advised its citizens to rethink travel to the country amid the worsening security conditions. Kidnap gangs, jihadists, and separatists are causing chaos in Nigeria. Is Trump correct that Christians are facing persecution in Nigeria? Over 500 suspects faced trial in Abuja’s federal high court, accused of participating in attacks or aiding militants with funding, weapons, or logistics. On Friday, judges convicted 386, acquitted two, discharged eight, and postponed cases for 112 others, according to officials. Five defendants admitted guilt early on, confessing to charges like selling livestock, providing food, or sharing information with the militant groups. The US launched airstrikes in northern Sokoto state on Christmas Day targeting the Lakurawa Islamist militants, following President Donald Trump’s claims of Christian persecution in Nigeria. The government rejected Trump’s assertion, noting that violence affected people of all faiths and none. ‘Peace is a gradual thing’: How land, cattle and identity fuel a deadly Nigerian conflict.
