Weapons seized by the Nigerian forces from Islamist extremist group Boko Haram are displayed for the press on June 5, 2013/AFP
Both groups have spread terror in northeastern and central Nigeria and are blamed for thousands of deaths as they battle to set up an Islamic state.
“These designations are an important and appropriate step, but only one tool in what must be a comprehensive approach by the Nigerian government to counter these groups … to help root out violent extremism,” the State Department said.
The Islamist insurgency by the shadowy group has claimed scores of lives since 2009 and triggered concern over its potential to spread across the porous borders in the region.
“By cutting these terrorist organizations off from US financial institutions and enabling banks to freeze assets held in the United States, these designations demonstrate our strong support for Nigeria’s fight against terrorism and its efforts to address security challenges in the north,” White House homeland security advisor Lisa Monaco said.
Nigeria welcomed the decision and hoped that the United States would step up intelligence cooperation.
“We salute the US government for its effort in partnering with Nigeria to rout out terrorism,” Justice Minister Mohammed Adoke told AFP in Nigeria.
“We hope that with this development that the Boko Haram menace will soon become a thing of the past,” he said.
In July, the State Department offered a $7 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau, but raised eyebrows by stopping short of designating the group as a foreign terrorist organization.
While Washington believes that Boko Haram and Ansaru remain “primarily” Nigerian organizations, “both these groups have links to AQIM,” a senior State Department official told reporters, referring to Al-Qaeda’s north and west African affiliate.
“Our assessment is that AQIM has helped provide some training to the groups and has provided some limited financing.”
Emergency rule in the northeast has largely pushed Boko Haram fighters from urban areas into the countryside over the last six months, but attacks have continued unabated.
The three Nigerian states under special measures – Yobe, Borno and Adamawa – share frontiers with Niger, Chad and Cameroon and the military has said that insurgents have struck in Nigeria, then fled across the borders.
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