A Nigerian soldier is arrested for tipping off criminals - but does it go deeper?

Now, in a nation that for over a decade has been blighted by armed attacks on civilians, people are wondering whether these assaults are failing to subside because criminal elements and security personnel are working together.It is not unreasonable to believe some of these groups are being assisted by military personnel, Bashir Galma, a security analyst and retired army major, told the BBC."I know there have been instances where plans are made for an attack on a location and the information finds its way to either [militant Islamist group] Boko Haram or another criminal gang," he said, suggesting an insider tip-off.At least 3,000 kidnappings and 3,580 killings by armed groups took place between January 2024 and April 2025 alone, data from Nigeria's National Human Rights Commission records The alarming surge in mass abductions has been attributed to gunmen known locally as bandits, as well as insurgent attacks from Boko Haram and its offshoot, Iswap.Attacks on schools have also been making the headlines, although this has been a problem for years. Between April 2014 and May 2026, there were 26 major school attacks with at least 2,416 students abducted, the International Centre for I...