HURIWA to Tinubu: Reclaim Nigeria’s Forests from terrorists, make Kwara rescue model for nationwide operation

● Group commends DSS, Kwara Forest Guards for freeing nine victims, says coordinated intelligence can defeat bandits

The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, HURIWA, has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to launch an immediate, intelligence-driven nationwide rescue mission to reclaim Nigeria’s forests from terrorist and kidnapping gangs, warning that the country has reached a “defining moment” in its security crisis.

In a press statement signed by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, and released on Saturday, August 1, 2026, HURIWA said the recent successful rescue of nine kidnapped victims in Kwara State by the Department of State Services, DSS, Kwara Forest Guards, local hunters and vigilantes proves that criminal groups can be defeated when agencies work together.

The operation, which also led to the killing of three suspected bandits, was described by HURIWA as “courageous, professional and reassuring.”

—“Who Is In Charge of Nigeria’s Forests?”—

But the rights group cautioned against treating the Kwara operation as an isolated win, noting that hundreds of Nigerians remain in captivity across terrorist enclaves nationwide.

“Every successful rescue operation should trigger an even more robust nationwide campaign aimed at dismantling terrorist camps and liberating every Nigerian still being held hostage,” HURIWA said.

The group posed a direct question to the government:

“Who is really in charge of Nigeria’s forests — the constitutional government elected by the Nigerian people, or the terrorist gangs that continue to abduct citizens almost at will?”

HURIWA lamented that armed gangs have continued to raid schools, attack farms, intercept travellers, and keep victims in forest camps for weeks without decisive disruption.

“It is unacceptable that criminal gangs can establish camps, move abducted citizens across forests, negotiate ransoms and continue to threaten communities while families wait endlessly for news of their loved ones,” the statement read.

“Every Nigerian still in terrorist captivity represents not only a humanitarian tragedy but also a painful reminder that the Nigerian State must intensify efforts to protect lives and secure every inch of its territory.”

—Calls For Tech-Driven Overhaul—

The association said the persistence of kidnapping despite huge budgetary allocations to security points to gaps in intelligence gathering, inter-agency coordination, surveillance and rapid response.

To address this, HURIWA urged the Federal Government to urgently deploy advanced technology including long-range drones, satellite imagery, electronic intelligence systems, AI-assisted analysis, geospatial mapping, aerial reconnaissance and modern communications interception to detect terrorist camps before attacks occur.

It also called for stronger intelligence-sharing and unified operational command structures to coordinate simultaneous rescue operations across flashpoints.

The group further asked the CBN, NFIU, EFCC and ICPC to intensify investigations into financial networks funding kidnapping and terrorism.

“Disrupting financial flows and dismantling criminal logistics networks are essential components of any successful counter-terrorism strategy,” it noted.

HURIWA expressed particular concern over ongoing captivity cases in Kwara, Niger, Zamfara, Katsina, Sokoto, Kebbi, Southern Kaduna and other areas plagued by recurring attacks.

—Make Kwara The Template, HURIWA Tells Tinubu—

The group specifically called on President Tinubu, as Commander-in-Chief, to convene the nation’s security leadership and order a coordinated nationwide mission involving the Armed Forces, DSS, Nigeria Police Force, NSCDC and other specialised units.

“The rescue operation in Kwara should become the operational model for similar interventions across every region where kidnappers continue to hold innocent Nigerians,” HURIWA stated.

“The success recorded in Kwara proves that when intelligence is timely, agencies collaborate effectively and operational decisions are decisive, terrorists can be confronted and innocent lives can be saved. There is no reason why such coordinated operations cannot be replicated simultaneously across every kidnapping hotspot in Nigeria.”

The association warned that prolonged captivity deepens public anxiety, weakens trust in government, disrupts farming and commerce, and inflicts severe trauma on families.

“Nigerians are not asking for impossible miracles; they are asking for the full deployment of the constitutional powers, institutional capacity and operational capabilities already available to the Nigerian State,” HURIWA said.

“Nigeria cannot and must never concede any part of its territory to criminal organisations. Terrorists must not be allowed to dictate the security narrative, undermine national sovereignty or keep innocent citizens in captivity with impunity.”

The group concluded that the state must demonstrate “both the resolve and the capacity to protect every citizen, recover every occupied space and ensure that no terrorist group is permitted to operate beyond the reach of the law.”