LAGOS—The United States has urged its citizens to reconsider travel to Nigeria and authorized the departure of non‑emergency U.S. government employees and their families from the embassy in Abuja, citing worsening security conditions in Africa’s most populous nation.
The embassy said separately it had closed for visa appointments but American citizen services were available in emergencies and by appointment. It did not give a reason for the closure or say how long it would last.
U.S. travel advisories often shape how investors, international organizations and airlines assess country risk. The move to allow staff departures signals heightened concern inWashington as kidnappings, banditry and attacks on security forces persist, particularly in northern Nigeria.
In an updated advisory late on Wednesday, the State Department kept Nigeria at Level 3: Reconsider Travel, but added Plateau, Jigawa, Kwara, Niger and Taraba to states Americans were warned not to visit. That puts 23 out of 36 of the country's states in the “Do Not Travel” category.
The United States highlighted threats from Islamist insurgents in the northeast, criminal gangs in the northwest and ongoing violence in parts of southern and southeastern Nigeria, including oil‑producing regions.
Nigeria's information ministry said in a statement that the travel alert was guided by U.S. internal protocols and did not reflect the overall security situation across Nigeria.
"While we acknowledge isolated security challenges in some areas, there is no general breakdown of law and order, and the vast majority of the country remains stable," the statement said.
Last month, Washington warned of a “terrorist threat”against U.S. facilities and affiliated schools in Nigeria.
The U.S. reviews the advisory several times a year and has kept Nigeria at Level 3 or Level 4 for much of the past decade due to persistent insecurity.
The U.S. military has multiple MQ-9 drones operating in Nigeria alongside 200 troops to provide training and intelligence support to the military, which is fighting Islamist terrorists across the north.