A new report by the Observatory for Religious Freedom in Africa (ORFA) has revealed that no fewer than 79,323 people were killed in terrorism-related violence across Nigeria between 2020 and 2025, while 34,773 civilians were abducted during the same period.
The findings are contained in a six-year investigative report titled “Four Times Boko Haram? How the World Misreads Nigeria’s Violence,” unveiled in Jos on Tuesday.
In a statement issued by ORFA’s Senior Research Analyst, Frans Vierhout, the organisation said the data paints a disturbing picture of Nigeria’s security crisis, with an average of seven violent attacks and 36 deaths recorded every day during the six-year period.
According to the report, 42,033 of those killed were civilians, while the remaining 37,290 deaths involved security personnel and members of armed groups.
ORFA said the findings were based on years of research and verification of attack patterns across the country, arguing that they challenge prevailing narratives about the main drivers of insecurity in Nigeria.
The report contended that Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), often regarded as the country’s most notorious terrorist organisations, accounted for only 12 per cent of civilian deaths recorded during the review period.
It attributed eight per cent of civilian killings to Boko Haram and four per cent to ISWAP.
By contrast, the report alleged that armed groups it classified as “Fulani Terror Groups” were responsible for 44 per cent of civilian deaths, amounting to 18,577 fatalities, compared with the combined 4,941 civilian deaths linked to Boko Haram and ISWAP.
ORFA emphasised that its classification refers only to armed criminal groups and should not be interpreted as a reference to the wider Fulani ethnic community.
“The overwhelming majority of Fulani people are not involved in violence,” the organisation stated.
Commenting on the findings, Vierhout said the evidence pointed to a pattern that could no longer be overlooked.
He said the organisation examined the locations of attacks, the identities of victims, methods of killing and seasonal trends before arriving at its conclusions.
According to him, violence attributed to armed Fulani groups has become the dominant contributor to Nigeria’s civilian death toll, adding that excessive international focus on Boko Haram presents an incomplete picture of the country’s security challenges.
The report also documented 34,773 civilian abductions during the six-year period.
It alleged that groups classified as “Fulani Terror Groups” were responsible for 43 per cent of the abductions, while “Unidentified Terror Groups” accounted for 49 per cent.
ORFA further examined what it described as the religious dimensions of the violence.
According to the report, 28,551 Christians and 13,224 Muslims lost their lives during the review period.
It claimed that, after adjusting for population distribution in affected states, Christians were killed at a rate 4.4 times higher than Muslims.
The report also highlighted what it termed a “Captivity by Creed” pattern, based on testimonies from survivors of abduction.
According to ORFA, Muslim captives generally faced lower ransom demands and were less likely to be subjected to violence, while Christian captives allegedly experienced higher ransom demands, harsher treatment, greater risk of execution and, in the case of women, increased exposure to sexual violence.
It added that 15,932 Christians and 15,272 Muslims were abducted during the period but maintained that Christian victims were more likely to endure prolonged captivity and execution even after ransom payments had been made.
Steven Kefas, ORFA’s Senior Research Analyst and author of Captivity by Creed: The Religious Sorting System Nobody Talks About, said the research identified a consistent pattern in the treatment of hostages.
According to him, survivor accounts suggest that Muslim and Christian captives often experienced significantly different conditions from the moment they were taken hostage.
The report further revealed that about 75 per cent of civilian deaths occurred during attacks on communities, many of which involved raids on farming settlements, killings, abductions, sexual violence and the destruction of homes and other property.
ORFA said its findings were compiled from a database containing up to 60 data points for each incident, drawing on field investigations, local partners, academic research, media and NGO reports, as well as verified social media content.
The organisation called for a broader understanding of Nigeria’s security crisis, arguing that efforts to address the country’s violence would remain inadequate without taking into account what it described as its religious dimensions.
According to the statement, recognising all factors driving the conflict is essential to developing lasting and effective solutions to the country’s security challenges.