The Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) spokesperson, Chukwuemeka Obua, has told AFP in an interview today that thousands of Nigerians have been blocked from travelling abroad in a bid to stop them becoming involved in foreign terrorism, prostitution or other criminal activities.

It was revealed that almost 24,000 nationals aged 17 to 35 were turned back at the border between January 2014 and March this year.

"There have been reports in recent times of some Nigerians departing to join terrorist groups especially in the Middle East and north Africa. The crackdown sought to prevent young Nigerians being lured into terrorism, prostitution, slavery and other untoward activities abroad," the NIS said in a statement.

Nigeria is struggling to end a 6-year insurgency by Boko Haram Islamists that has claimed more than 15,000 lives and displaced 100 times that number in the north-east. But the country has also become a 'catchment area for recruiters' abroad because of high unemployment, the NIS said.

Nigerian media reported at the weekend that two cousins from Kano in the north were caught at the weekend trying to cross from India into Pakistan, with eventual plans join up with the Islamic State group in Iraq.

The NIS said foreign terrorist organisations had syndicates to arrange travel documents, visas, tickets and money for their Nigerian recruits.

“To counter this, the NIS now engages in intense profiling of travellers. We have always had problems of Nigerians going abroad for greener pasture. We look at the age of the intending traveller and the person he is travelling with, put them by the side and profile them thoroughly.”