On Wednesday, April 8, the United States of America issued an order to urgently evacuate employees from its embassy and other locations in Nigeria. The US advised its nationals to reevaluate their plans to travel to Nigeria in a travel advisory issued by the Department of State because of the country's high rates of crime, unrest, kidnapping, terrorism, and uneven healthcare facilities. Additionally, the US cautioned its people against visiting states including Yobe, Adamawa, Borno, Kogi, Niger, Taraba, Jigawa, Kwara, and Plateau. The advice claims that the states on the above list have high rates of crime, terrorism, and kidnapping.
Additionally, it stated that Abia, Anambra, Bayelsa, Delta, Enugu, Imo, and Rivers states (apart from Port Harcourt) should be avoided because of crime, abduction, and unrest. In contrast, Bauchi, Gombe, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Sokoto, and Zamfara states are havens for unrest, crime, and kidnapping.
The warning stated, "Due to the worsening security situation, the Department of State authorized non-emergency U.S. government employees and U.S. government employee family members to leave U.S. Embassy Abuja on April 8, 2026."
The advisory said, “On April 8, 2026, the Department of State authorized non-emergency U.S. government employees and U.S. government employee family members to leave the U.S. Embassy Abuja due to the deteriorating security situation.
“Violent crime is common throughout Nigeria. This includes armed robbery, assault, carjacking, kidnapping, hostage-taking, roadside banditry, and rape. “Kidnappings for ransom happen often. They primarily target dual national citizens visiting Nigeria. Americans are perceived as wealthy and are often targets of crime and kidnapping. “Kidnapping gangs have stopped drivers on interstate roads to rob and kidnap victims,” the US Department of State said.
It further stated that terrorists are working with local gangs in Nigeria to plan and execute surprise assaults in soft target locations such as stores, malls, marketplaces, hotels, places of worship, schools, and government buildings.
It also cautioned that Nigerian medical institutions are typically below U.S. or European standards, so Americans should expect a lower quality of healthcare in Nigeria than in the United States.
