700 repentant Boko Haram members rejoin society as Nigeria intensifies reintegration program

• The Nigerian military says over 700 repentant insurgents have completed rehabilitation.

• The programme is run under Operation Safe Corridor.

• Participants underwent deradicalisation, vocational training and counselling before reintegration.

• Authorities say the programme aims to encourage fighters from Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province to surrender.

Nigeria’s military says more than 700 repentant boko haram terrorists who surrendered during the fight against insurgency in the North-East are ready to be reintegrated into society after completing a government rehabilitation programme.

The disclosure was made by Yusuf Ali, the coordinator of Operation Safe Corridor, during a media tour of the programme’s Deradicalisation, Rehabilitation and Reintegration (DRR) camp in Gombe State.

Ali said the ex-fighters had successfully gone through the programme’s deradicalisation and rehabilitation process and were now awaiting graduation before being returned to their communities.

According to him, the initiative is part of the Federal Government’s broader strategy to end insurgency by encouraging fighters to surrender and abandon violent extremism.

“The programme focuses on deradicalisation, rehabilitation and reintegration of repentant insurgents who voluntarily surrendered to the Nigerian military,” he said.

He explained that participants receive psychological counselling, religious re-orientation, education and vocational training designed to prepare them for civilian life.

Ali also addressed widespread concerns and rumours that former insurgents undergoing rehabilitation might be recruited into Nigeria’s security forces.

He dismissed the claim as false, stressing that the programme’s objective is strictly to rehabilitate and reintegrate them into civilian society, not to absorb them into the military.

The coordinator noted that the reintegration process is carried out in collaboration with state governments, security agencies and community leaders to ensure proper monitoring after the participants return to their communities.

Nigeria launched Operation Safe Corridor in 2016 as part of efforts to address the insurgency involving extremist groups such as Boko Haram and its offshoot, Islamic State West Africa Province, which have carried out deadly attacks in the North-East for more than a decade.

The programme has, however, remained controversial among some Nigerians and victims of insurgency who argue that reintegrating former fighters into communities could pose security risks.

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Despite the criticism, authorities maintain that rehabilitation programmes are necessary to reduce the number of active insurgents and encourage more fighters to lay down their arms.

Officials say the over 700 participants are expected to graduate soon, marking another phase in the government’s efforts to stabilise communities affected by terrorism in the North-East.

Four key pointsThe Nigerian military says over 700 repentant insurgents have completed rehabilitation.

The programme is run under Operation Safe Corridor.

Participants underwent deradicalisation, vocational training and counselling before reintegration.

Authorities say the programme aims to encourage fighters from Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province to surrender.

Four key pointsThe Nigerian military says over 700 repentant insurgents have completed rehabilitation.

The programme is run under Operation Safe Corridor.

Participants underwent deradicalisation, vocational training and counselling before reintegration.

Authorities say the programme aims to encourage fighters from Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province to surrender.