Trio of Sahel states move to expose Nigerian politicians sponsoring terrorism

Intelligence agencies from Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso are reportedly set to release names of senior Nigerian political figures allegedly financing terrorism and aiding arms trafficking in West Africa, according to multiple regional sources.

The unprecedented move follows coordinated security operations under the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), a bloc formed by the three countries after their withdrawal from ECOWAS. The AES has intensified intelligence-sharing and border control efforts to dismantle militant and arms-smuggling networks that have destabilized the Sahel and Nigeria’s northwest. According to reports from DW Hausa, the regional-language service of Deutsche Welle, and counterinsurgency expert Zagazola Makama, the Sahelian intelligence agencies claim to already possess the names of Nigerian political sponsors of violence. Several gunrunners allegedly linked to these figures have been arrested and are under investigation.

“The scale of their arms transactions is alarming,” a regional security source told Makama. Reports suggest that funds intended for peace negotiations were diverted to purchase high-caliber weapons, fueling jihadist violence and banditry across porous borders. The revelations echo recent warnings by Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, who confirmed the presence of collaborators within the political class and military. “I think the process is on. It has to do with a lot of legal issues, and because again, it has to do with international connections,” he said. As AES nations push ahead, this development could trigger political fallout in Nigeria and deepen scrutiny of high-level complicity in West Africa’s protracted insecurity.