The Sambisa Forest is a forest in Borno State , northeast Nigeria . It is in the southwestern part of Chad Basin National Park , about 60 km southeast of Maiduguri , the capital of Borno State . It has an area of 518 km.
66-567: The Sambisa forest is located at the northeastern tip of the west Sudanian Savanna and the southern boundary of the Sahel Savannah about 60 km south east of Maiduguri , the capital of the state of Borno . It occupies parts of the states of Borno , Yobe , Gombe , Bauchi along the corridor Darazo , Jigawa , and some parts of Kano state farther north. It is administered by the Local government areas of Nigeria of Askira/Uba in
132-711: A 16-minute video in which he voiced his support for ISIL 's leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi , al-Qaeda's leader Ayman al-Zawahiri and the Afghan Taliban 's leader Mullah Omar . In March 2015, Shekau pledged allegiance to ISIS self-styled caliph Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi and became "West African Province" ( Wilayat Garb Ifriqiyah ), i.e. the West African province of the Islamic State. However, in August 2016, Al-Baghdadi replaced Shekau with Abu Musab al-Barnawi,
198-628: A factor in Boko Haram's success. Wealth in Nigeria has been concentrated among members of a small political elite. Nigeria is Africa's biggest economy, but 60% of its population of 173 million (as of 2013) live on less than $ 1 a day. The sharia law imposed by local authorities, beginning with Zamfara in January 2000 and covering 12 northern states by late 2002, may have promoted links between Boko Haram and political leaders, but
264-723: A mass prison break in September 2010 in Bauchi , was accompanied by increasingly sophisticated attacks, initially against soft targets , but progressing in 2011 to include suicide bombings of police buildings and the United Nations office in Abuja . The government's establishment of a state of emergency at the beginning of 2012, extended in the following year to cover the entire northeast of Nigeria, led to an increase in both security force abuses and militant attacks. Of
330-454: Is a departure from mainstream Islam but not Salafi jihadism. An insurgent aiming to overthrow a Muslim government faces a challenge due to mainstream Islamic doctrine, which forbids the killing or enslaving of fellow Muslims, including government officials, military personnel, or ordinary Muslims who don't support the insurgency. However, by using takfir—declaring opponents as apostates—the insurgents not only bypass this prohibition but also turn
396-417: Is better equipped with drones, weapons and vehicles captured from and sometimes abandoned by Nigerian military during ambush. To better fortify itself, Nigerian military has concentrated the rural population in its garrison towns. This has allowed Boko Haram to operate freely in the countryside. In 2019 they were believed to be back in control of 4 out of 10 zones of Borno State. For at least four years since
462-543: Is from the Arabic حَرَام ( ḥarām , "forbidden") and the Hausa word boko (the first vowel is long, the second pronounced in a low tone), meaning "fake", which is used to refer to secular Western education. In a 2009 statement they denounced that translation as the work of the "infidel media", claiming the true translation is "Western Civilization is forbidden", and that they are not "opposed to formal education coming from
528-664: Is one of the few forests in North Eastern Nigeria where sparse vegetation is the norm. Most of the vegetation is typical of the Sudanian Savanna although, because of human activity, some parts have become more like the Sahel savanna. The forest consists of a mixture of open woodland and sections of very dense vegetation of short trees about two metres high and thorny bushes, with a height of 1/2-1 metre, which are difficult to penetrate. Major trees and bushes in
594-728: Is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass . It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth . The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some Romance languages ( ouest in French, oest in Catalan, ovest in Italian, oeste in Spanish and Portuguese). As in other languages, the word formation stems from the fact that west
660-554: Is reported to have used the existing infrastructure of the Izala Society (Jama'at Izalatil Bidiawa Iqamatus Sunnah), a popular conservative Islamic sect, to recruit members, before breaking away to form his own faction. The Izala were originally welcomed into government, along with people sympathetic to Yusuf. Boko Haram conducted its operations more or less peacefully during the first seven years of its existence, withdrawing from society into remote north-eastern areas, believing it
726-410: Is sometimes abbreviated as W . To go west using a compass for navigation (in a place where magnetic north is the same direction as true north) one needs to set a bearing or azimuth of 270°. West is the direction opposite that of the Earth 's rotation on its axis, and is therefore the general direction towards which the Sun appears to constantly progress and eventually set. This is not true on
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#1732757680096792-507: Is the direction of the setting sun in the evening: 'west' derives from the Indo-European root *wes reduced from *wes-pero 'evening, night', cognate with Ancient Greek ἕσπερος hesperos 'evening; evening star; western' and Latin vesper 'evening; west'. Examples of the same formation in other languages include Latin occidens 'west' from occidō 'to go down, to set' and Hebrew מַעֲרָב (maarav) 'west' from עֶרֶב (erev) 'evening'. West
858-572: Is thought to have been one of the causes of the 1967–1970 civil war ; religious violence reached a new height in 1980 in Kano, the largest city in the north of the country, where the Muslim fundamentalist sect Yan Tatsine ("followers of Maitatsine") instigated riots that resulted in four or five thousand deaths. In the ensuing military crackdown, Maitatsine was killed, fuelling a backlash of increased violence that spread across other northern cities over
924-567: The Boko Haram jihadist group's activities since 2013 have reduced their numbers since then. An aerial survey of the game reserve in 2006 reported seeing only five large wild animal species. During the colonial period, the Sambisa game reserve covered an area of 2,258 km (872 sq mi) in the eastern part of the forest. Later reports put the size of the game reserve at 518 square kilometers, although some official documents included
990-634: The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant . According to the BBC , due to internal disputes between the two groups, hundreds of terrorists left Boko Haram and formed their own organization, named "Islamic State's West Africa Province". In September 2015, the director of information at the Defence Headquarters of Nigeria announced that all Boko Haram camps had been destroyed but attacks from
1056-1140: The Jordan River westward into the Promised Land . In Islam , while in India, people pray facing towards the west as in respect to Mecca , Mecca is in the West-ward direction. In American literature (e.g., in The Great Gatsby ) moving West has sometimes symbolized gaining freedom , perhaps as an association with the settling of the Wild West (see also the American frontier and Manifest Destiny ). Boko Haram Non-state opponents 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 Boko Haram , officially known as Jamā'at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da'wah wa'l-Jihād ( Arabic : جماعة أهل السنة للدعوة والجهاد , lit. 'Group of
1122-575: The Kano Salafi Izala Sheik Ja'afar Mahmud Adamu , who called him the "leader of young people"; the two split some time in 2002–2004. They both preached in Maiduguri 's Indimi Mosque , which was attended by the deputy governor of Borno. Many of the group were reportedly inspired by Mohammed Marwa, known as Maitatsine ("He who curses others"), a self-proclaimed prophet ( annabi , a Hausa word usually used only to describe
1188-512: The Ngadda Rivers . The climate is hot and semi-arid, with minimum temperatures of about 21.5 °C between December and February , a maximum of about 48 °C in May and average temperatures of about 28-29 °C. The dry season is from November to May and the wet season is between May and September / October with annual rainfall of about 190 mm. The Sambisa forest
1254-597: The Sudan golden sparrow . The forest was also thought to be the last remaining site of the ostrich in Nigeria. Seventeen species of mammals were reported in 2010 in the Sambisa Game Reserve including, baboon , patas monkey , tantalus monkey , Grimm's duiker , red-fronted gazelle , African bush elephant , roan antelope , hartebeest , African leopard and spotted hyenas . However poaching, chopping downing trees for fuel, human agricultural penetration and
1320-632: The United Nations (UN) headquarters in Abuja, the first time they had struck a Western target. A spokesman claiming responsibility for the attack, in which 11 UN staff members died as well as 12 others, with more than 100 injured, warned of future planned attacks on U.S. and Nigerian government interests. Speaking soon after the U.S. embassy's announcement of the arrival in the country of the FBI , he went on to announce Boko Haram's terms for negotiation, i.e.
1386-517: The "West African Province" which is part of ISIL ; "Jamā'at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da'wah wa'l-Jihād" (Boko Haram), under Shekau's control; and " Ansaru " which is loyal to al-Qaeda and rejected the caliphate of al-Bagdadi, though it shares his disapproval of the "wide-reaching interpretation of takfir" of Shekau. Since 2018, there has been a major spike in attacks by Boko Haram, (concentrated in Borno State ), which sought to prove Boko Haram to be
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#17327576800961452-585: The 2.3 million people displaced by the conflict since May 2013, at least 250,000 left Nigeria and fled to Cameroon , Chad or Niger . Boko Haram killed over 6,600 people in 2014. The group has carried out massacres including the killing by fire of 59 schoolboys in February 2014 and mass abductions including the kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls in Chibok , Borno State , Nigeria, in April 2014. Corruption in
1518-606: The Christian message in the region and converted a large segment of the Nigerian populace. British rule ended when Nigeria was granted independence in 1960. Except for a brief period of civilian rule between 1979 and 1983, Nigeria was governed by a series of military dictatorships from 1966 until the advent of democracy in 1999. According to the Borno Sufi Imam Sheik Fatahi, Yusuf was trained by
1584-490: The Islamic caliphate and bring all peoples under its domain, doing away with modern states and patriotic feeling towards them. After Boko Haram declared its allegiance to the Islamic State, an IS statement proclaimed "It was the rejection of nationalism that drove the mujahidin (jihad fighters) in Nigeria to give bay'ah (fealty) to the Islamic State and wage war against the Nigerian murtaddin (apostates) fighting for
1650-668: The Marguba Forest Reserve in the Sambisa Game Reserve . From 1970, the reserve was used for safaris. It had a large population of leopards, lions, elephants, hyenas, that tourists could observe from cabins or safari lodges. In 1991, the government of the state of Borno incorporated this reserve into the national park of the Chad Basin . But the abandonment of its management, following the Sambisa takeover by Boko Haram insurgents in February 2013, led to
1716-764: The Nigerian taghut (idolatrous tyrant)". The movement is diffuse, and fighters who are associated with it follow the Salafi doctrine . Members' beliefs tend to be centered on strict adherence to Wahhabism , which is an extremely strict form of Sunni Islam that sees many other forms of Islam as idolatrous . The group has denounced the members of the Sufi and the Shiite sects as infidels, and also mainstream Sunni Muslims who fail to support their jihad. This willingness to takfir – i.e. accuse self-professed Muslims of being apostates from Islam and thus subject to execution –
1782-654: The People of Sunnah for Dawah and Jihad '), is an Islamist terrorist jihadist organization based in northeastern Nigeria , which is also active in Chad , Niger , northern Cameroon , and Mali . In 2016, the group split, resulting in the emergence of a hostile faction known as the Islamic State's West Africa Province . Founded by Mohammed Yusuf in 2002, the group was led by Abubakar Shekau from 2009 until his death in 2021, although it splintered into other groups after Yusuf's death in 2009, as well as in 2015. When
1848-554: The Sambisa forest. It was also reported that 218 of the girls were still missing and that the found girl claimed that except six said to have died, all of them were still held captive in the forest. Between 19 and 20 May 2021, the forest was captured by IS-West Africa Province (ISWAP) after fierce fighting between ISWAP and Boko Haram. In March 2022, Nigerian military uncovered the wreckage of an Alpha Jet , 1 year after it crashed in Sambisa. [REDACTED] Media related to Sambisa Forest at Wikimedia Commons West West
1914-517: The West ). The ancient Aztecs believed that the West was the realm of the great goddess of water , mist, and maize . In Ancient Egypt , the West was considered to be the portal to the netherworld , and is the cardinal direction regarded in connection with death , though not always with a negative connotation. Ancient Egyptians also believed that the Goddess Amunet was a personification of
1980-550: The West" but "believe in the supremacy of Islamic culture (not education)". Other translations in English include "Western influence is a sin", and "Westernization is sacrilege". Until the death of its founder Mohammed Yusuf , the group was also reportedly known as Yusifiyya . Northern Nigerians have commonly dismissed Western education as ilimin boko ("fake education") and secular schools as makaranta boko ("fake school"). Some analysts have emphasized economic causes as
2046-786: The West. The Celts believed that beyond the western sea off the edges of all maps lay the Otherworld , or Afterlife. In Judaism , west is seen to be toward the Shekinah (presence) of God, as in Jewish history the Tabernacle and subsequent Jerusalem Temple faced east, with God's Presence in the Holy of Holies up the steps to the west. According to the Bible , the Israelites crossed
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2112-826: The Western part of the earth has its roots in the Western Roman Empire and the Western Christianity . During the Cold War "the West" was often used to refer to the NATO camp as opposed to the Warsaw Pact and non-aligned nations . The expression survives, with an increasingly ambiguous meaning. In Chinese Buddhism , the West represents movement toward the Buddha or enlightenment (see Journey to
2178-525: The country's return to civilian rule, have been implicated in much of the sectarian violence in the years following. The Arewa People's Congress , the militia wing of the Arewa Consultative Forum , the main political group representing the interests of northern Nigeria, is a well-funded group with military and intelligence expertise and is considered capable of engaging in military action, including covert bombing. Mohammed Yusuf founded
2244-781: The direction of the Earth's rotation, the prevailing wind in many places in the middle latitudes (i.e. between 35 and 65 degrees latitude ) is from the west, known as the westerlies . The phrase "the West" is often spoken in reference to the Western world , which includes the European Union (also the EFTA countries), the United Kingdom, the Americas, Israel, Australia, New Zealand and (in part) South Africa. The concept of
2310-574: The first major clash between the two groups. His death was confirmed by his loyalists led by Sahalaba in June. Boko Haram's attacks consist of suicide bombings as well as conventional armed assaults on both civilian and military targets. Following the Chibok kidnapping in 2014, the majority of Boko Haram's suicide bombers are female; many are teenagers and the youngest was seven. Boko Haram jihadists rely on stealth, blending into local communities or hiding in
2376-510: The forest include tallow , rubber , wild black plum , birch , date palm , mesquite , acacia , monkey bread , red bushwillow , baobab , jackalberry , tamarind and terminalia . BirdLife International reported that, the 62 species of birds have been recorded in the Sambisa Game Reserve, including the guinea fowl , francolin , village weaver , Abyssinian ground hornbill , Arabian bustard , Savile's bustard , African collared-dove , chestnut-bellied starling , black scrub-robin and
2442-818: The forest, but was slowed down due to finding the forest to be heavily mined and the militants having better local knowledge. Despite this, on 28 April 2015, four Boko Haram camps in the Sambisa forest were overrun by the Nigerian military who freed nearly 300 girls and women, who were not, however, the missing Chibok girls . On 30 April 2015, another 13 Boko Haram camps were destroyed and 234 more women and children were reportedly freed near Kawuri and Konduga . The Nigerian Army Wednesday night 4 November 2015, said troops of 5 Brigade Task Group, killed two Boko Haram suspects, after destroying their camps at Hausari and Baranga in Marte Local Government Area of Borno State . According to official statement by
2508-424: The former governor of Borno State Ali Modu Sheriff , who initially supported Boko Haram, but no longer needed them after the 2007 elections and stopped funding them. Sheriff denies the accusations. Boko Haram and ISIL were initially allies. However, the two groups became enemies due to territorial disputes, because ISIL tried to conquer the zones which were under Boko Haram's control. In July 2014, Shekau released
2574-519: The founder of Islam) born in Northern Cameroon who condemned the reading of books other than the Quran. In a 2009 BBC interview, Yusuf, expressed similarly pre-modern ideas on evolution , a flat earth , and rain sent directly from God rather than evaporation . Followers of Maitatsine "wreaked havoc" in northern cities of Nigeria "off and on" from 1980 to 1985. Ethnic militancy
2640-632: The gradual disappearance of animals, lodges collapsed or were destroyed, vegetation invaded roads, and rivers dried up. The Sambisa forest, especially the mountainous region of Gwoza near the Cameroon border, is used as shelter by the jihadist Boko Haram group and is believed to be where they keep the hostages from the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping in April 2014. During spring 2015, the Nigerian Army started an offensive against Boko Haram in
2706-614: The group "JAS" in 2010. Rather, there was a "priority scale" with Christians, the government and publicly anti-JAS Muslim preachers targeted first. This also meant any Muslims killed collaterally were not a concern since they were "guilty" for not having joined his jihad. …[by] October 2010, …assassinations targeting Muslim religious leaders, especially Salafists who opposed JAS's religious interpretation, as well as civil servants, became an almost weekly occurrence in northeastern Nigeria. In addition to this, prisons, banks, mosques, churches and beer halls also were common targets of attack. Before it
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2772-545: The group continue. In 2019, the president of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari , claimed that Boko Haram was "technically defeated". Shekau was killed and confirmed to be dead in May 2021. Despite this, Boko Haram experienced a subsequent revival under a new leader, Bakura Doro . The organization's name has always been Group of the People of Sunnah for Dawa and Jihad (Arabic: جماعة أهل السنة للدعوة والجهاد , romanized: Jamā'atu Ahli is-Sunnah lid-Da'wati wal-Jihād ). It
2838-676: The group retreated to the Sambisa Forest and commenced its guerilla warfare tactics. In August 2016, ISIL attempted to remove Shekau from his leadership role and replace him with Abu Musab al-Barnawi . ISIL attempted to remove Shekau because he had disobeyed Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi 's order to cease targeting Muslim civilians. Shekau rejected the move, leading to a split between the groups. As of 2017, there were three factions which were all Boko Haram in origin, all rejecting "democracy, secularism and Western influence", and seeking to establish an Islamic state implementing sharia . These were
2904-504: The group was first formed, their main goal was to "purify", meaning to spread Sunni Islam , and destroy Shia Islam in northern Nigeria , believing jihad should be delayed until the group was strong enough to overthrow the Nigerian government . The group formerly aligned itself with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant . The group has been known for its brutality, and since the insurgency started in 2009 , Boko Haram has killed tens of thousands of people, in frequent attacks against
2970-399: The group's use of the "historical narrative" of the Islamic Kanem–Bornu Empire . Mohammad Yusuf preached that, "our land was an Islamic state before it was turned into a land of kafir (infidel); the current system is contrary to true Muslim beliefs". The political interests and bias of the Nigerian elite is believed to play a major role in the thriving of the activities of the organization:
3036-412: The idea that rain comes from "evaporation caused by the sun" rather than being created and sent down directly by God. Boko Haram opposes the Westernization of Nigerian society, which it blames for "Nigeria's culture of corruption", and demands the establishment of an Islamic state in Nigeria. It developed into a jihadist group in 2009. As Sunni Salafi Jihadis , the group strives to re-establish
3102-501: The killing of these Muslims into a "religious duty." In a 18 December 2016 speech to his commanders, Shekau proclaimed that 'even if a woman is praying and fasting, once she engages in democracy I can capture her in a battle'. According to researchers Jacob Zenna and Zacharias Pier, after 2010… Shekau, believed that jihad was obligatory and that not actively joining his jihad was tantamount to apostasy. This did not mean Shekau actively killed anyone after he announced jihad and renamed
3168-426: The military, "In efforts to continually dominate recovered territories and clear all Nigerian territory of Boko Haram vestiges, the advancing troops of 5 Brigade Task Group have today cleared five more terrorists camps at Hausari and Baranga in Marte Local Government Area of Borno State." On 18 May 2016, one of the schoolgirls abducted from Chibok in 2014, was reportedly found by local militia men fighting Boko Haram in
3234-533: The next twenty years. Social inequality and poverty contributed both to the Maitatsine and Boko Haram uprisings. In the decades since the end of British rule, politicians and academics from the mainly Islamic North have expressed their fundamental opposition to Western education. Political ethno-religious interest groups, whose membership includes influential political, military and religious leaders, have thrived in Nigeria, though they were largely suppressed under military rule. Their paramilitary wings, formed since
3300-499: The north of the country. On 24 December, Boko Haram detonated four bombs in Jos and attacked two churches in Maiduguri. On 31 December, Boko Haram bombed a barracks in Abuja, killing four civilians. Under Shekau's leadership, the group continuously improved its operational capabilities. It launched a string of IED attacks against soft targets and its first vehicle-borne IED attack on 16 June 2011, killing six at Abuja 's police headquarters. On 26 August, Boko Haram bombed
3366-406: The planet Venus , which rotates in the opposite direction from the Earth ( retrograde rotation ). To an observer on the surface of Venus, the Sun would rise in the west and set in the east although Venus's opaque clouds prevent observing the Sun from the planet's surface. In a map with north at the top, west is on the left. Moving continuously west is following a circle of latitude . Due to
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#17327576800963432-451: The police, armed forces and civilians . It has resulted in the deaths of more than 300,000 children and has displaced 2.3 million from their homes. Boko Haram has contributed to regional food crises and famines . After its founding in 2002, Boko Haram's increasing radicalisation led to the suppression operation by the Nigerian military and the killing of its leader Mohammed Yusuf in July 2009. Its unexpected resurgence, following
3498-491: The political leadership requires that the press refer to the group as bandits rather than terrorists, which downplays the threat they pose. In a discussion organized by the Woodrow Wilson Center , Chief Olusegun Obasanjo , a former president of Nigeria, highlighted the low level of literacy and education in the Northern parts of the country as contributing to the perpetuation of Boko Haram. According to Obasanjo, illiterate and uneducated children are more likely to be drawn into
3564-437: The prevalent terror group in the country. Attacks by Boko Haram resulted in over 1700 fatalities in the first half of 2019, including casualties of its own members. When climate change-induced poverty and violence struck the Lake Chad basin , the terrorist organization was able to recruit in large numbers by offering small loans and promising big rewards. It also continues to kidnap and force young boys to join them. Boko Haram
3630-417: The ranks of the terrorist organization. The founder of Boko Haram, Muhammad Yusuf, was reportedly inspired by the controversial Islamic preacher Mohammed Marwa ( Maitatsine ), who condemned the reading of any books other than the Quran . Yusuf, himself, in one 2009 interview, expressed his opposition not only to Western education, but to the theory of evolution , a spherical (not flat) Earth, and to
3696-456: The sect that became known as Boko Haram in 2002 in Maiduguri, the capital of the north-eastern state of Borno. He established a religious complex and school that attracted poor Muslim families from across Nigeria and neighbouring countries. The center had the political goal of creating an Islamic state , and became a recruiting ground for jihadis . By denouncing the police and state corruption, Yusuf attracted followers from unemployed youth. He
3762-472: The security services and human rights abuses committed by them have hampered efforts to counter the unrest . In mid-2014, the militants gained control of swaths of territory in and around their home state of Borno, estimated at 50,000 square kilometres (20,000 sq mi) in January 2015, but did not capture the state capital, Maiduguri , where the group was originally based. On 7 March 2015, Boko Haram's leader Abubakar Shekau pledged allegiance to
3828-455: The son of the Boko Haram's previous leader Muhammad Yusuf, their motivation (at least according to one source) being to trim back Shekau's tendency to apply takfir (accusations of apostasy) to "all mainstream Muslims". Shortly before Boko Haram pledged allegiance to ISIL, the Nigerian government launched the 2015 West African offensive during which Boko Haram lost most of the territory which it had occupied over time. Following this offensive,
3894-414: The south, by Damboa in the southwest, and by Konduga and Jere in the west. The name of the forest comes from the village of Sambisa which is on the border with Gwoza in the East . The Gwoza hills in the East have peaks of 1,300 meters above sea level and form part of the Mandara Mountains range along the Cameroon-Nigeria border. The forest is drained by seasonal streams into the Yedseram and
3960-399: The split happened, the two groups were not enemies and sometimes co-operated in some terror attacks. However, Boko Haram and ISWAP later became enemies since 2021 or even a year before. ISWAP gunmen targeted Shekau in an attack carried out on May 20, 2021. Several Boko Haram members were killed in the operation, while Shekau blew himself up, or tried to do so, in order to avoid a capture. It was
4026-555: The vast countryside. Critics accuse the Nigerian military of not properly equipping its soldiers to fight Boko Haram. In 2009, police began an investigation into the group, code-named Operation Flush. On 26 July, security forces arrested nine Boko Haram members and confiscated weapons and bomb-making equipment. Either this or a clash with police during a funeral procession led to revenge attacks on police and widespread rioting in Bauchi , Maiduguri, Potiskum in Yobe State and Wudil in Kano State . A joint military task force operation
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#17327576800964092-455: Was colonized and subsequently incorporated into the British Empire as Colonial Nigeria in 1900, the Bornu Empire ruled the territory where Boko Haram is currently active. It was a sovereign sultanate run according to the principles of the Constitution of Medina , with a majority Kanuri Muslim population. In 1903, both the Borno Emirate and Sokoto Caliphate had come under British rule. At this time, Christian missionaries spread
4158-415: Was also known as the West African Province ( Wilayat Garb Ifrqiya ), and, after pledging allegiance to Islamic State in 2015, was briefly called Islamic State in West Africa (ISWA) or Islamic State's West African Province (ISWAP). The group fractured in 2016, however, and ISWAP and Boko Haram are now separate groups. The name Boko Haram is usually translated as " Western education is forbidden". "Haram"
4224-415: Was considered by the group to have been corrupted. Academic Atta Barkindo explains the group's "baffling" ability to "maintain momentum" in part by the "accumulated and unaddressed grievances" against colonialism in the region, including the colonial boundaries (of Nigeria, Ghana , etc.) established by Europeans that bear no resemblance to "pre-colonial empires , ethnic or cultural territories", and by
4290-628: Was important to develop strength before waging jihad. The government repeatedly ignored warnings about the increasingly militant character of the organization. The Council of Ulama advised the government and the Nigerian Television Authority not to broadcast Yusuf's preaching, but their warnings were ignored. Yusuf's arrest elevated him to hero status. Stephen Davis, a former Anglican clergyman who has negotiated with Boko Haram many times blames local Nigerian politicians who support local bandits like Boko Haram in order for them to make life difficult for their political opponents. In particular Davis has blamed
4356-717: Was launched in response. By 30 July, more than 700 people had been killed; police stations , prisons , government offices, schools and churches had been destroyed. Yusuf was arrested, and died in custody "while trying to escape". As had been the case decades earlier in the wake of the 1980 Kano riots, the killing of the leader of an extremist group would have unintended consequences. He was succeeded by Abubakar Shekau , formerly his second-in-command. On 7 September, having regrouped under their new leader, Boko Haram broke 105 of its members out of prison in Bauchi along with over 600 other prisoners. The group went on to intensify their insurgency, launching many attacks in Nigeria, mostly in
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