Nigeria dismantles nearly 3,000 seized illegal weapons in public destruction ceremony
Nigeria's arms control agency publicly destroyed 2,819 confiscated illegal weapons to stop them re-entering circulation.
Agency head Johnson Kokumo oversaw a public demolition of 2,819 illicit, obsolete and decommissioned firearms. Officials say the effort targets the flow of illegal arms that fuels banditry, kidnappings, insurgency and communal violence. Since its 2021 launch, the agency has seized over 21,000 illegal weapons and destroyed more than 19,000.
Why it matters
Destroying seized guns reduces the supply of arms that fuel Nigeria’s widespread violence.
In this story
Nigeriaillicit weaponsarms control agencyJohnson Kokumoweapon destructionbanditryinsurgencycommunal violenceseized firearms