Nigeria has published an updated sanctions list naming 48 individuals and 12 entities suspected of financing terrorism, as the government escalates its crackdown on extremist funding networks operating across the country.
The list was released through the Nigeria Sanctions Committee (NiGSAC) and published on the committee’s official website, nigsac.gov.ng.
The publication contains limited details. The Nigeria Sanctions Committee (NSC) did not disclose the nationalities of those named, their levels of involvement, or the specific terrorist groups they are allegedly linked to. No photographs or other identifying details such as gender were included.
Among those named are Tukur Mamu and Simon Ekpa, a Finland-based separatist figure. Authorities said the inclusion of individuals and entities followed intelligence gathering and inter-agency collaboration aimed at dismantling funding channels sustaining violent groups.
Ekpa was sentenced in September 2025 by the Päijät-Häme District Court in Finland to six years in prison for terrorism-related offences, including incitement and participation in a terrorist group.
Nigeria enacted the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, which established the NSC as the national body responsible for implementing United Nations Security Council Resolutions (UNSCRs) on Targeted Financial Sanctions. These sanctions are designed to deny individuals or entities associated with terrorism access to assets, funds, equipment, or support.
The sanctions list names individuals linked to several proscribed organisations. Among those listed are individuals reportedly associated with groups such as the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Ansarul Sudan (ANSARU), and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).
The release comes amid a mass terrorism trial at the Federal High Court in Abuja, where 227 suspects were arraigned before 10 judges in a single session. Five of the accused have already received jail terms ranging from seven to 20 years after pleading guilty to charges that included selling livestock and supplying food to insurgents.
Authorities say some of those on the new sanctions list allegedly financed terrorism through cryptocurrency schemes, fraud, and international networks, while others reportedly supported insurgents by distributing funds to fighters’ families.
Over time, insecurity has expanded beyond the North-East, with armed groups and bandit networks carrying out attacks and kidnappings for ransom across several parts of the country. The government recently designated bandit groups as terrorist organisations, broadening its counter-terrorism strategy.
