A new six-year investigation by the Observatory for Religious Freedom in Africa has revealed that 79,323 people were killed in terrorism-related violence in Nigeria between 2020 and 2025, while 34,773 civilians were abducted during the period.
The findings were released to members of the public in Jos, Plateau State, on Tuesday in a report titled: “Four Times Boko Haram? How the World Misreads Nigeria’s Violence” and confirmed in a statement signed by a Senior Research Analyst of the Observatory for Religious Freedom in Africa, Mr Frans Vierhout.
According to the report, the violence averaged seven attacks and 36 deaths per day over the six years.
“79,323 people were killed in Nigeria between 2020 and 2025, an average of seven attacks per day. More than 42,000 were innocent civilians,” the statement said.
ORFA, which monitors the state of religious freedom, documents rights violations, and informs decision-makers through advocacy, stated that researchers “spent years cross-referencing attack patterns — and the data gathered overturns longstanding assumptions.”
The breakdown shows that “42,033 killings were of civilians; security forces and terror groups make up 37,290 deaths.”
The investigation challenges the perception that Boko Haram and ISWAP are the primary drivers of violence.
“Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) — the terror groups most blamed for violence — together carried out 12% of civilian killings: Boko Haram 8%, and ISWAP 4%,” the report stated.
It found that “Militias categorised as ‘Fulani Terror Groups’ killed 44% of all civilians — four times the killings of Boko Haram and ISWAP combined.”
In specific figures: “Fulani terror groups killed 44% of civilians (18,577); Boko Haram and ISWAP combined killed 12% (4,941).”
ORFA stressed the distinction between perpetrators and ethnicity, saying “ORFA is careful to distinguish between armed Fulani terror groups and the Fulani people as a whole, the vast majority of whom are not involved in violence.”
Vierhout said the patterns are hard to ignore.
“The data makes this very difficult to ignore… We look at how killing occurs. Who they target, where they operate, the seasonal fluctuations of killings — and the evidence points strongly in one direction.
“Violence linked to Fulani militias is the dominant force behind Nigeria’s death toll. The Western preoccupation with Boko Haram is, at best, misleading.
“Nigeria is incubating a terror network which the outside world has yet to acknowledge,” he stated.
The report documented “34,773 civilians abducted over the six years, with ‘Fulani terror groups’ and ‘unidentified terror groups’ carrying out 43% and 49% of abductions respectively.”
It also flagged a religious dimension.
“Twice as many Christians killed as Muslims: 28,551 Christians against 13,224 Muslims,” the report said, noting that “when Christian losses are examined in terms of state populations, Christians were killed at 4.4 times the rate of Muslims in affected states.”
ORFA described a ‘Captivity by Creed’ pattern based on survivor accounts.
“Muslim captives face lower ransoms and less violence; Christians face higher ransoms, greater likelihood of execution. Christian women face sexual violence.
“Christian abductions numbered 15,932 and Muslims 15,272 in total over the period,” the report noted.
However, “Christian hostages face higher ransoms, longer negotiation periods, worse violence and greater risk of execution – even after their families have paid in full.”
“The field research reveals that a lesser value is assigned to a Christian life,” said Steven Kefas, Senior Research Analyst and author of ‘Captivity by Creed: The Religious Sorting System Nobody Talks About.’
“From the moment of capture, Muslim and Christian hostages enter different realities. It is not about individual captors. It is a system – consistent across multiple states, armed groups, and multiple years of survivor testimony,” Kefas said.
The investigation found that “75% of civilians killed in community attacks: raids on farming settlements involving abduction, rape and property destruction.”
ORFA said it recorded “up to 60 data elements for each violence incident” using “5 data streams,” including its primary research base, local partners, academic projects, media/NGO reports, and validated social media.
The Observatory called for a broader response.
“They urge a recognition that without a full accounting of the religious dimensions of violence in Nigeria, attempts to find solutions remain incomplete,” the statement concluded.
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