The world’s deadliest Jihadist group, Boko Haram, has caused both deforestation and reforestation in certain areas in Northeast Nigeria, due to the presence of armed groups, mass migration and government neglect. The hypotheses raised in this study assume that Boko Haram would contribute to forest regrowth in the Sambisa Forest and deforestation in the heavily refugee concentrated city of Maiduguri. To test these hypotheses, remote sensing was used to examine the impact of armed conflict and its outcome on forest ecosystems. Landsat 7 and 8 were both used to derive images through Google Earth Engine with an NDVI to investigate the impacts. The results showed a massive regrowth in vegetation in the Sambisa Forest after a Boko Haram take-over, and a decrease in vegetation in Maiduguri due to mass migration, COVID19 and the Koshebe massacre.This study is important as it shows that the environmental damage which is brought about by the military sector must now be recognised as a significant threat to global sustainability, peace and security. These threats to sustainability endanger food security and livelihoods as well as increases the vulnerability of rural communities. These massive losses can lead to unrest over scarce resources between refugees and host communities which has the ability to create further conflict. Environmental damage should therefore be recognised as a ‘threat multiplier’ affecting national and human security as well as post-war rehabilitation of ecosystem services making it critical to the restoration of peace. Human security has the potential to grow as long as nations recognise that humankind is linked in inter-dependence with the natural environment.