SERAP urges UN to act on Nigeria’s insecurity crisis

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has called on United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres to invoke Article 99 of the UN Charter, warning that Nigeria's escalating insecurity crisis now threatens international peace and security. The organization issued a statement and an open letter urging the UN to bring the situation to the attention of the Security Council without delay.

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Nigeria’s escalating insecurity and grave human rights violations are reflected in repeated abductions, killings, attacks on civilians, and mass displacement in Oyo, Benue, Borno, Plateau, Kaduna, Zamfara, and several other parts of the country.

SERAP highlighted that Nigeria's escalating insecurity and grave human rights violations, including repeated abductions, killings, and mass displacement across multiple states, have surpassed domestic concerns. "The scale, persistence, and regional implications of the insecurity and grave human rights crisis in Nigeria pose a threat to international peace and security," SERAP stated, emphasizing that Article 99 is designed for situations requiring urgent international action.

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the scale, persistence, and regional implications of the insecurity and grave human rights crisis in Nigeria pose a threat to international peace and security.

The organization pointed to the recent abduction of pupils and teachers in Oyo State, where armed men attacked schools in Oriire Local Government Area, resulting in the abduction of at least 25 pupils and seven teachers, and the killing of an assistant headmaster. Other examples cited include abductions in Benue State, bombings in Maiduguri, Borno State, and coordinated attacks in Katsina and Adamawa states, illustrating a "rapidly deteriorating" security situation.

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Article 99 of the UN Charter is designed precisely for situations in which emerging or ongoing crises require urgent preventive diplomacy, sustained international scrutiny, and coordinated international action.

SERAP stressed that the crisis in Nigeria is not merely a domestic law-enforcement issue. The cross-border movement of armed groups, displacement, and instability have significant regional consequences, necessitating preventive diplomacy and a coordinated global response to prevent further deterioration and widespread humanitarian suffering.

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at least 25 pupils and seven teachers were abducted