A new six-year investigation by the Observatory for Religious Freedom in Africa has revealed that 79,323 people were killed in terrorism-related violence in Nigeria between 2020 and 2025, while 34,773 civilians were abducted during the period.
The findings were released to members of the public in Jos, Plateau State, on Tuesday in a report titled: “Four Times Boko Haram? How the World Misreads Nigeria’s Violence” and confirmed in a statement signed by a Senior Research Analyst of the Observatory for Religious Freedom in Africa, Mr Frans Vierhout.
According to the report, the violence averaged seven attacks and 36 deaths per day over the six years.
“79,323 people were killed in Nigeria between 2020 and 2025, an average of seven attacks per day. More than 42,000 were innocent civilians,” the statement said.
ORFA, which monitors the state of religious freedom, documents rights violations, and informs decision-makers through advocacy, stated that researchers “spent years cross-referencing attack patterns — and the data gathered overturns longstanding assumptions.”
