The Terrorism (Prohibition and Prevention) bill, 2022, which President Muhammadu Buhari signed into law, gave life in prison or the death penalty for anyone found guilty of abduction, hostage-taking, or hijacking. This decision gave Nigerian authorities a major boost in the fight against insecurity in the nation.

In order to “provide for an effective, unified and comprehensive legal, regulatory and institutional framework for the detection, prevention, prohibition, prosecution and punishment of acts of terrorism, terrorism financing, proliferation and financing of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction in Nigeria; and for related matters,” the National Assembly passed legislation, which was viewed by the Nigerian Tribune.

According to Section 24(1a-c) of the law, “A person commits an offence if they knowingly or intentionally take someone’s property or detain them in order to force them to do or refrain from doing a lawful act; threaten to kill, injure, or detain them in order to do or refrain from doing a lawful act; or give an explicit or implicit condition for the release of the person held hostage, or the property or facility detained.”

According to Section (2a-b), an individual who violates subsection (1) of this section faces the possibility of being sentenced to death if their actions cause death, or life imprisonment if they cause death.

The legislative framework aims to address the following issues, as stated in Section 1(a-h) of the legislation: terrorism financing; proliferation and financing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction in Nigeria; and effective, unified, and comprehensive legal, regulatory, and institutional framework for the detection, prevention, prohibition, prosecution, and punishment of acts of terrorism.

Along with measures under Nigerian law for the implementation and enforcement of regional and international counterterrorism conventions and agreements for the fight against terrorism, terrorism financing, and related offenses, it also lays out procedures for the implementation of financial measures resulting from counterproliferation resolutions in accordance with Article 41 of the UN Charter.

“Procedures for the declaration of a person or entity as a terrorist or terrorist entity, or terrorism financier; extraterritorial jurisdiction of the courts in relation to acts of terrorism; measures to enable Nigeria to act effectively in the fight against the financing of terrorism, including mechanisms regarding reporting of suspected incidents of financial and other support for terrorist entities; measures for the detention, freezing, search and seizure, confiscation and forfeiture of terrorist property; and the compensation of victims of acts of terrorism” are some of the other provisions of the document.

A person or body corporate, within or outside Nigeria, who knowingly, directly or indirectly, does, attempts, or threatens to do any act of terrorism; commits an act preparatory to or in furtherance of an act of terrorism; commits to do anything that is reasonably necessary to prevent an act of terrorism; assists or facilitates, or funds the activities of persons engaged in an act of terrorism; participates, as an accomplice, in or contributes to the commission of an act of terrorism or offences.” Section 2 deals with the prohibition of acts of terrorism and its financing; assists, facilitates, plans, or directs the actions of individuals or organizations involved in terrorist acts or who are accessory to any offense; encourages, coerces, or offers rewards to anyone in order for them to commit acts of terrorism or other offenses; or recruits for terrorist organizations for any reason, including carrying out terrorist acts, is guilty of an offense and will face the appropriate punishment if found guilty.

Any intentional act that is carried out with the intention of advancing any ideology—political, religious, racial, or ethnic—that could seriously harm or damage a nation or an international organization, unduly compel a government or an international organization to carry out any act or refrain from carrying out any act, or seriously intimidate a population is considered a “act of terrorism,” according to the law.

It also covers actions that violate the terms of any international treaty or resolution to which Nigeria is a party, subject to the provisions of section 12 of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), and involve, cause, or result in the following: seriously destabilize or destroy the fundamental political, constitutional, economic, or social structures of a nation or an international organization; influence a government or an international organization by intimidation or coercion; attacks on people’s lives that involve serious physical harm or death, kidnapping, the destruction of a government building or other public facility, a transportation network, infrastructure, including vital information infrastructure for the country, a fixed platform situated on the continental shelf, a public area or private property that could put people’s lives in danger or cause significant financial loss, the seizure of a ship, aircraft, or other means of public transportation or goods conveyance, or the diversion or use of such means of transportation, among other things.

“An act, which disrupts a service but is committed in pursuance of a protest, demonstration, or stoppage of work is not a terrorist act within the meaning of this definition,” the legislation states, provided that the act is not intended to cause any harm mentioned in subsection (3)(b), (c), (d), (e), (f), or (g), of this section.

A person who kidnaps or attacks an internationally protected person, murders an internationally protected person, violently attacks an internationally protected person’s official premises, private residence, or means of transportation, or threatens to carry out any such attack, is guilty of an offense and faces a minimum sentence of 25 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, if the act in question does not result in the victim’s death. These are the offenses listed in Section 11 of the law, which outlines the laws against individuals who are protected by international law.

It further provides for the death sentence, where death arises from the act in paragraphs (a), (b), (c) of this section; or in the event of the offence under paragraph (d) of this section, to a period of imprisonment of not less than 20 years.

The law that forbids terrorist gatherings states that: “Anyone who, on knowledge of the facts, collects, or provides logistics, equipment, information, articles, or facilities for a meeting or an activity, which in his knowledge is concerned or connected with an act of terrorism or terrorist group; or attends a meeting, which in his knowledge is to support a proscribed entity or to further the objectives of a proscribed entity, commits an offence and is liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term of not less than 20 years.”

“A person who, on board an aircraft in flight, seizes or exercises control of that aircraft by force, threat, or any other form of intimidation, commits an offence and is liable on conviction to life imprisonment,” according to Section 34 on “Offenses relating to civil aviation, safety of ships, and fixed platforms.”

According to Section 35, “A person who – commits an act of violence against a person on board an aircraft in flight, if that act is likely to endanger the safety of that aircraft; destroys an aircraft in service, or causes damage to an aircraft which renders it incapable of flight, or which is likely to endanger its safety in flight; places or causes to be placed on an aircraft in service, by any means whatsoever, a device or a substance which is likely to destroy that aircraft, or cause damage to it, which renders it incapable of flight, or cause damage which is likely to endanger its safety in flight.”

The legislation is also applicable to a person who “destroys or damages air navigation facilities or interfering with their operation, if the act is likely to endanger the safety of the aircraft in flight; or communicates information, which the person knows to be false, thereby endangering the safety of the aircraft in flight, commits an offence, and is liable on conviction to – imprisonment for a term of not less than 20 years, or a death penalty, where death results from the commission of the act.”

A minimum of 20 years in prison is the penalty for anyone found guilty of supplying, selling, or transferring, directly or indirectly, arms and related materiel of any kind, including weapons and ammunition, military vehicles and equipment, paramilitary equipment, and their spare parts, as well as technical advice, assistance, or training related to military activities, to people placed on the Consolidated List. This is stated in Section 46 of the law imposing the arms embargo. This conduct can be carried out within Nigerian territory, by Nigerian nationals living abroad, or by anyone using Nigerian-flagged vessels or aircraft.