Why terrorists target and murder religious leaders in northern Nigeria — Shehu Sani

Former Kaduna Central Senator, Shehu Sani, has identified three major reasons terrorists target and assassinate prominent religious clerics in northern Nigeria.

According to Daily Post, Sani disclosed this in a post on his verified X account on Tuesday, October 27, 2026.

He explained that clerics murdered over the past 15 years shared three common characteristics: speaking against extremism, promoting interreligious tolerance and peace, and publicly mentioning terrorist leaders or groups during sermons.

The former lawmaker recalled that he accompanied former President Olusegun Obasanjo to Maiduguri in 2011 for a private peace dialogue.

According to him, the individual who facilitated the meeting was assassinated the following day, while he and Obasanjo subsequently received threats.

Sani maintained that terrorists deliberately target religious leaders who challenge their activities and promote peaceful coexistence.

“All the prominent clerics that have been assassinated in the North in the last fifteen years were killed for speaking out against terrorism.

“The terrorists want silence, or they will silence,” Shehu Sani said.