The Northern Elders Forum has urged President Bola Tinubu to declare a state of emergency in northern Nigeria, citing the worsening scale of insecurity and the government’s constitutional and international obligation to protect lives.

In a communiqué signed by its spokesperson, Prof. Abubakar Jiddere, on Wednesday, the forum demanded, “a state of emergency in northern Nigeria, acknowledging the extraordinary scale of the crisis.”

It called on the government to “Deploy adequately trained  armed, and equipped security forces with clear rules of engagement to protect civilian populations and secure international border regions.”

NEF expressed grave concern over the spate of violent attacks, abductions, and killings across the region, warning that continued inaction could endanger Nigeria’s stability and regional peace.

The NEF lamented that security agencies remain overstretched, under-resourced, and in some cases complicit through silence or inaction, leaving citizens vulnerable and eroding public trust in government.

The forum recalled the August 19 attack on a mosque in Unguwan Mantau village, where at least 27 worshippers were killed during early morning prayers, with several others injured and hundreds displaced. It also condemned the execution of 35 abductees in Zamfara State despite ransom payments, as well as separate attacks in Kauru and Kudan LGAs of Kaduna State, which left eight people dead and eight others severely injured.

Jiddere said: “These incidents are not isolated cases but part of a persistent pattern of organised criminal violence and banditry that have claimed thousands of lives, displaced hundreds of thousands, crippled economic activities, undermined food security, and inflicted deep psychological and social trauma on communities.

“The recurring atrocities in northern Nigeria constitute serious breaches of Nigeria’s constitutional and international obligations. In their scale and persistence, they may amount to crimes against humanity under international law.”*