By Opeyemi Adelakun
The Nigeria Police Force has ordered heightened security around schools, places of worship, NYSC orientation camps and other vulnerable locations following intelligence indicating possible coordinated terrorist attacks across the country.
The security alert, circulated to police formations nationwide, said the threat could coincide with the resumption of the 2026/2027 academic session.
According to the police communication, intelligence available to the Department of Operations showed an “increased mobilisation of terrorist elements for possible coordinated attacks” targeting vulnerable locations.
The alert was distributed to Assistant Inspectors-General of Police overseeing Zones 1 to 17, Commissioners of Police across the states, Mobile Police units, counter-terrorism formations and other specialised units.
The police also disclosed that armed elements had reportedly moved from Katsina through Kaduna towards Plateau State.
“There is an increased mobilisation of terrorist elements for possible coordinated attacks on places of worship, schools, NYSC orientation camps and other vulnerable locations,” the communication stated.
The Force further said suspected Islamic State West Africa Province operatives and their local collaborators were conducting surveillance and reconnaissance of potential targets.
Following the intelligence, commanders were directed to strengthen intelligence-led surveillance, patrols, stop-and-search operations, access control and rapid-response arrangements around identified vulnerable sites.
State police commands were also ordered to tighten security at borders, entry and exit routes and other strategic approaches to frustrate the movement of armed elements.
The Defence Headquarters said it was monitoring the situation.
“We are monitoring the situation,” the Director, Defence Media Operations, Maj. Gen. Michael Onoja, said.
The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps also announced increased intelligence operations around schools and other learning institutions.
The NSCDC spokesperson, Babafemi Afolabi, said the corps had doubled its intelligence network across its state commands and that federal and tactical teams had previously thwarted more than 100 attempted attacks on schools.
He said the Commandant-General had briefed state commandants and directed personnel to remain vigilant as schools reopened.
“All tactical squads, officers, and men of the Corps in different state commands — the Commandant General has already briefed them through their commandants. So, now that schools have resumed, they’ve doubled their intelligence network, and I’m very sure that nothing of such will happen,” Afolabi said.
He urged parents to allow their children to return to school, while stressing the need for communities to work closely with security agencies.
“I would advise parents and their wards to just let them free to go to school. Nothing of such will happen. That’s why we’ve been able to work in collaboration with other stakeholders, even the community leaders,” he said.
Former Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Ali Amodu, said issuing security alerts was part of the responsibility of law enforcement agencies and could help citizens remain prepared.
He urged residents to report suspicious persons, vehicles and movements, particularly around worship centres and other public locations.
“Security is everybody’s business. I must be very frank with you, over the years, we Nigerians have taken things for granted. It is now dawning on us that there is a need for us to be very cautious in what we do and to be alert,” Amodu said.
Former Director of the Department of State Services, Mike Ejiofor, also urged Nigerians to take the warning seriously and called for preventive action by security agencies.
“If you get such an advisory, we should take it seriously so that people are not caught unawares,” he said.
Ejiofor stressed that security agencies, governments and citizens must work together to prevent attacks, adding that information from communities could help security operatives detect threats early.
“The people must be security conscious, and they must also report back to the security agencies. That’s what this ‘see something, say something’ is important for,” he said.
Meanwhile, the National Secretary of the Uche Onyia-led faction of the National Parent Teacher Association of Nigeria, Ibrahim Nabayi, said the latest security concerns had heightened parents’ fears about sending their children back to school.
“Parents are worried now, parents are scared of sending children back to school,” Nabayi said.
He called for stronger security around schools and advocated the deployment of technology capable of detecting threats approaching educational institutions.
Nabayi also urged the Federal Government to revive and properly implement the Safe School Initiative, which he said had previously involved mapping schools for improved surveillance and rapid response.
He said communities should also take greater responsibility for protecting schools by reporting suspicious activities.
“We want synergy between the government and the communities where schools are located. Security is not the responsibility of the government alone. The communities where schools reside should be proactive,” he said.
On schools in high-risk areas, Nabayi suggested temporarily moving students to safer institutions rather than shutting schools indefinitely.
He warned that prolonged closures could further disadvantage children, particularly those without access to online learning.
The latest warning comes against the backdrop of previous attacks on educational institutions, including reported school abductions in Oyo State in May 2026.
The Department of State Services had also previously alerted religious leaders in Osun State to an alleged plan by terrorists to attack worship centres and other public gathering locations ahead of the 2027 general elections.
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