Islamists kill 9 school children in. Nigeria

[novasteve]

BBC News - Nigeria militants kill school children in Maiduguri


Obama wants talks with the Taliban who are very similar to this group?

 

[waltky]

Boko Haram not letting up despite military operations...

Despite Army Operations, No Letup in Nigerian Militant Attacks
August 13, 2013 — Reports are circulating that militants killed dozens of people in northeastern Nigeria during the weekend, most of whom were praying at a mosque. Some analysts said the insurgent group Boko Haram could be trying to warn civilians not to cooperate with authorities.

Locals say men in fatigues, but not Nigerian soldiers, attacked a mosque early Sunday in the town of Kanduga as people were praying. The reports said at least 44 people were killed. Locals said another attack in the village of Ngom killed at least 12. Officials confirmed the attacks happened outside of Maidguri, the original home of Boko Haram, but did not say how many people were killed. Elizabeth Donnelly, assistant head of the Africa Programme for the London-based think tank Chatham House, said recent attacks are meant to show the public Boko Haram has not been conquered, despite thousands of soldiers being deployed in Yobe, Adamawa and Borno states, which are under emergency rule. “With this current attack it is demonstrating its presence. It is flexing its muscles," Donnelly said. "It is showing that it still has the capacity to cause serious harm.”

But she also said the attacks do not necessarily mean that the Nigerian government is losing its war with insurgents. The region has been largely cut off from the rest of the country for the past three months, with cell phone lines and other forms of communications usually down. Donnelly said the latest attacks show military claims to be crushing Boko Haram and Boko Haram claims to be growing stronger could each be true. “You are [seeing] heightened activity around Maiduguri because this is where the core of the group has now been squeezed and remains. Or if this thing actually-the state of emergency, is really going anywhere because, well clearly it is not delivering protection to civilians,” she stated.

In this photo taken on Aug. 8, 2013, Nigerian Muslims walk past an uncompleted mosque in Maiduguri, Nigeria.

Borno State officials said the attack could have been intended to scare people who may have been sharing information with security forces. One of the pillars of their current security policy is to gather intelligence from local residents. Civilians have also formed vigilante groups with the support of Nigerian security forces. Usman Musa told a VOA reporter in Maiduguri his vigilante group went to Konduga after the mosque was attacked and fought with heavily armed militants, who killed four of Musa’s comrades. A new video released shortly after the attack on the mosque and in the nearby town of Ngom shows Abubakar Shekau, the man believed to lead Boko Haram, claiming responsibility for recent deadly attacks and promising more.

He said his fighters are ready to not only conquer Nigeria, but also confront the United States. After he speaks, a shaky video shows men burning what looks like an armored vehicle with flat tires in the desert. What sounds like gunshots can be heard and the camera pans to what appears to be some kind of aircraft flying over the smoky car. Boko Haram has been blamed for thousands of deaths since 2009 in attacks on the government, churches, schools, mosques, markets, international organizations and media houses. In his video messages, Shekau said the group wants to impose Islamic law and rescue imprisoned members. But like their latest video, their real motivations have never been entirely clear to outsiders.

Despite Army Operations, No Letup in Nigerian Militant Attacks

 

[ScienceRocks]

Islamis are disgusting pigs. We need to support moderate islam and kill every single extremist.

 

[waltky]

Boko Haram violence continues in spite of leader's death...

Nigeria Violence Continues Despite Claimed Killing of Boko Haram Leader
September 03, 2013 — It has been two weeks since the Nigerian military announced that Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau died in Cameroon in early August following injuries sustained in battle. However, there is still no confirmation or proof of his death. Nigerians remain skeptical of the military's claim, and analysts say killing off Boko Haram commanders won't stop the violence in northern Nigeria.

It's been three and a half months since the military launched a large-scale offensive against Boko Haram in northeastern Nigeria. The military says it's got Boko Haram on the run. That would hardly be surprising as insurgents, by definition, tend to avoid direct battlefield confrontation. But the military's claim is nearly impossible to confirm. Security forces have restricted access to the frontline and cell phone communications have been cut in much of the northeast. In August, the military Joint Task Force in Borno State announced that Boko Haram's leader and public face, Abubakar Shekau, and his deputy had been killed. It appears that other top members may also have been eliminated. So, what happens now?

It would seem that the conglomeration of radical militant factions in northern Nigeria, for which Boko Haram has become a kind of umbrella term, is in a bit of a leadership crisis, or at least in need of some major regrouping. Many in northern Nigeria say they won't believe Shekau is dead until they see his body. He previously had been declared dead at least twice in the past four years. It was Shekau who resurrected Boko Haram in 2010 after a heavy-handed military crackdown the previous year that led to the detention and murder of sect founder, Mohammed Yusuf, by police. Yusuf was a charismatic imam and preacher who founded the group in 2002. The sect was later nicknamed Boko Haram, which means "Western education is forbidden" in the local Hausa language.

A grab made on July 13, 2013 from a video obtained by AFP shows the leader of the Islamist extremist group Boko Haram Abubakar Shekau.

Shekau was Yusuf's deputy. While Yusuf was very much a public figure, analysts say Shekau took the group into the shadows and made it more violent. Nigeria analyst for the Washington-based Jamestown Foundation, Jacob Zenn, has studied Shekau. "He really transformed an organization that was sympathetic to the Taliban and al-Qaida to an organization that operated like the Taliban and al-Qaida. Whereas for Yusuf, it was mostly just preaching and preparing for jihad, but he [Shekau] transformed it from a preaching group about jihad to an actual jihadist group," said Zenn. Since 2010, Boko Haram's suicide bombings, drive-by shootings and other attacks in northern Nigeria have killed thousands of people.

Shekau has been in hiding for most of that time, presumably running the group through contact with select commanders. He would re-emerge in the group's videos. He is known for his hardline, impassioned discourse. He rattles off demands that include turning northern Nigeria into an Islamic state. He threatens enemies that have ranged from Christians to Nigerian security forces to the United States. He expresses solidarity with jihadists around the world. Operationally, he has kept Boko Haram focused on Nigeria. That is one thing that could change if he is dead. Experts say Shekau's faction is but one of as many as five factions that make up what is commonly referred to as Boko Haram. The past three years have been wracked by rivalries and internal divisions. Moderates have split off, some claiming to now speak on behalf of the group and others forming new groups.

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[waltky]

Boko Haram threat has Nigerian milirtary on high alert...

Nigeria Military on ‘High Alert’ Over Boko Haram Threat
September 11, 2014 ~ Nigeria’s military spokesman says national army soldiers have been placed on high alert in Maiduguri and its surrounding areas following reports that violent Islamist Boko Haram militants have taken over nearby towns and soon would attack the northern city. The reports are creating panic among residents about the alleged imminent Boko Haram attack.

But, Major Gen. Chris Olukolade said “alarmists” are to blame for the panic among the population, following what he said were false reports being peddled, which were intended to create tension. “Most of these claims are intended to be alarmist and to cause fear in the public, but we are not taking it lightly,” said Olukolade. “We have firmed up and upgraded all the defense arrangements around Maiduguri city and the environs to ensure that terrorists and their allies don’t find it easy to assault that town.” Olukolade said the military is not dismissing the reports, despite what he said is an attempt by some people to create chaos. “The alert state in the town has been heightened among the security agencies, as well as the community. There is a high degree of alertness at the moment, which we believe is sufficient to frustrate any such evil plan,” he said.

Olukolade declined to outline a potential military strategy, which could include a troop increase to counter the Boko Haram security threat in some of the northern towns. “The security arrangement is not dependent entirely on the number of troops, but on many factors, some of which I shouldn’t be disclosing, but that is not ruled out as well,” he said. “We believe that the arrangement in totality, and in consult with the entire populace, is sufficient to hold and frustrate that evil plan.” Some prominent leaders in the north have called for the military to bolster security in Maiduguri since they said nearby towns have been overrun by the militants. They contend the militants could attack Maiduguri if the military fails to demonstrate a heavy presence in the city.

Brig. Gen. Chris Olukolade, Nigeria's top military spokesman, speaks during a press conference on the abducted school girls in Abuja, Nigeria

Olukolade called on Maiduguri residents not to succumb to fear. “The people have no cause to fear, even while maintaining their already heightened level of vigilance. Lest the vigilance turn into fear as the terrorists and their cohorts intend by spreading this kind of information,” said Olukolade. “This is not the first time such alarmists’ information is being circulated, but this time around it has been heightened. We are not dismissing it entirely.”

Critics say the military has failed in its mandate to protect the population from rampant attacks often carried out by Boko Haram militants. They argue that the military is losing the war against the militants. But, Olukolade rejected the accusation as being without merit. He said the military has acquired new equipment, which is helping in its effort to combat the militants. “On an incremental level, we are improving our armament and stock, and a number [of weapons] have arrived, and they are being deployed, and so much more are being expected," he said. "And as they come in we deploy them to the mission. We are already seeing some of them having effect in the sense that the drive to degrade the terrorists has continued.”

Nigeria Military on High Alert Over Boko Haram Threat

 

[ScienceRocks]

time to kill, KILL, KILL These bastards!