The Department of State Services (DSS) and sister security agencies have sent an intelligence report to President Muhammadu Buhari in which they claimed that the Islamic State in West Africa terror group was chiefly responsible for the supposed herdsmen killings in Benue and some other states of the federation.
The terror group is said to be operating within some North Central and South-South sections of Nigeria.
A senior administration official told journalists under condition of anonymity that the terror group was using foreigners and recruiting young men to exploit Nigeria’s weak ethno-religious and regional “fault lines”, The Punch reported.
The source said the information was obtained following the arrest of suspected attackers comprising Fulani herdsmen, government-sponsored militias, militants and other miscreants in Benue State.
The source said some of the suspected attackers could not speak any known Nigerian language but were fluent in French.
The source further said it was the first time the Islamic State in West Africa group would be confirmed working in Nigeria as a unit.
“A good number of the Islamic State terrorists have been arrested not only in the Benue valley but significantly in several towns in Edo State, specifically in Akoko-Edo, Okpella and Benin as well as in Okene, in Kogi State.
“It is understood that the cell which has members in different parts of the country concentrates on recruiting young men to fight for the Islamic State in West Africa by unleashing the cold-blooded murder of innocent citizens.
“There was intelligence report that they had planned several attacks here, before and during Christmas and the New Year. Their bombing targets included fuel depots, foreign missions and police and military establishments.
“Their network is very wide. But so much was achieved by the DSS which had made a significant number of arrests in the last two months that helped to preempt those attacks,” the source said.