A court in Abuja on Friday convicted nearly 400 people in a four-day mass terrorism trial, handing many of the defendants sentences of up to 20 years.
The cases were heard by a panel of 10 judges. Prosecutors began the proceedings on Tuesday as part of a broader series of trials targeting suspects linked to Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).
Attorney General Lateef Fagbemi said authorities brought 508 cases to court. Of those, 386 resulted in convictions, eight defendants were discharged, two were acquitted, and 112 cases were adjourned to a later session, he said, calling the outcomes a sign that justice was being delivered.
Court officials said many defendants pleaded guilty to charges. International observers monitored the proceedings to help ensure fairness, including representatives from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Amnesty International and the Nigerian Bar Association.
Nigeria has endured a 16-year insurgency in the north and northeast that has killed tens of thousands, displaced some two million people and caused severe economic damage. Boko Haram and its ISWAP offshoot have fought to establish control in parts of the region for nearly two decades, contributing to widespread displacement and loss of life.
Separately, communal conflicts over land and grazing between mostly Muslim Fulani herders and largely Christian farming communities have sparked deadly clashes in the north-central and northwest. Kidnap-for-ransom gangs also remain active in parts of the country, adding to the complex security challenges.
Edited by: Jenipher Camino Gonzalez