The dreaded Islamic State terror group is sending fighters from war-torn Syria into Nigeria to be trained for possible attacks on the United Kingdom.
The Sun UK said in a Monday report that ISIS commanders were seeking to exploit the close relations between Nigeria and the UK.
The scheme is said to be a “chilling exchange programme” that sees Boko Haram also send its own fighters to Syria for training.
This was reported to have commenced since a Boko Haram faction swore allegiance to ISIS in 2016 and rebranded itself Islamic State in West Africa.
The paper quoted senior Nigerian Airforce Force officer, Group Captain Isaac Subi, as saying that, “They come and train their fighters here and some of our insurgents too are granted access to their training in Yemen and Syria, acquiring those skills and they come back and teach others.
“They have this exchange programme of fighters.”
He added that porous borders continue to render Nigeria an easy target for influx of hardened terrorists and other elements.
“There are hundreds of fighters. It’s a virus that spreads across our borders. Their action leaves trails of blood and tears and sorrow,” he added.
Senior military officials are also worried that regular flights from Lagos to London could make it easier for terrorists to land on UK soil.
“In time, unchecked it could present a threat to both UK interests and conceivably the UK mainland,” Britain’s defence adviser, Brig Charles Cadler, said.
He added that sending sending small, hand-picked teams out to military training hubs across the country was “the best way to prevent Nigeria collapsing”.
Britain is said to have trained 35,000 Nigerian military personnel across Nigeria’s air force, army, naval special forces and the equivalent of the SAS.