O Boko Haram it's a group terrorist emerged in Nigeria, which is often referred to as a “radical Islamic group” because of its actions correspond to the religious fundamentalism of combating Western influence and the radical implementation of the law. islamic, theharia. The name Boko Haram it means “non-Islamic education is a sin” or “Western education is a sin” in the Hausa language, a language widely spoken in northern Nigeria.
O emergence of Boko Haram took place in 2002 as a religious sect, founded by Mohammed Yusuf in the city of Maiduguri, capital of Borno state, Nigeria. For Yusuf and his followers, Western culture reproduced in society would be the main reason for the the country's ills, and its eradication is necessary to fight corruption and the neglect of the authorities towards the people. The current leader of Boko Haram is Abubakar Shekau.
As time went by, the Boko Haram became an increasingly well-armed military group, receiving various training and training actions by the
Al-Qaeda of the Maghreb and some other radical military groups existing in northern Africa. In 2009, with the death of Mohammed Yusuf during an armed confrontation, Boko Haram became a totally radical military organization. However, only in 2013 did the United States officially consider Boko Haram as a terrorist group, which is now one of the biggest of today.O main objective of Boko Haram today, in addition to fighting the Western principles and legacies left by British colonization in the country, it is the construction of an Islamic republic. To achieve this goal, the terrorist group uses many radical methods, including carrying out bombings and kidnapping to carry out territorial advances. Boko Haram also acts by kidnapping women, using them to obtain ransoms and, mainly, trading them as sex slaves.
The group's most notorious action to date took place in April 2014, when Boko Haram kidnapped around 276 women between 16 and 18 years old. According to reports by some of those who managed to escape, the militants used them as sex slaves and sold them to members of the organization for an average price of 12 dollars. Later indications also stated that most of the women were used in various combats.
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Group of Nigerians protest against Boko Haram in Alicante, Spain.*2
There are no concrete figures on the action of Boko Haram, but it is estimated that the terrorist group has already executed more than three thousand people, a number that rises continuously with each conflict that took place. The group has already taken over much of the territory of Nigeria, especially its areas to the north and northeast, on a map that is difficult to be represented, as the every month or week, a new city is taken or lost to Nigerian government troops, realigning the borders of the radical Islamic republic.
The thousands of Boko Haram fighters and militants have been fighting not only Nigerian government troops but also support from other countries. Chad and Niger, which form an African coalition, have been working on Nigerian territory to combat the actions of the terrorist militia, which eventually carries out activities outside Nigeria and threatens, with a possible expansion, the surrounding countries, mainly Cameroon, which has already suffered some attacks.
Boko Haram's actions are a demonstration of the expansion of the activity of terrorist groups around the world, something that intensified in the post-Cold War periods. Leader Abubakar Shekau has even sworn loyalty to another radical terrorist group, the Islamic state. This posture is not, at least for the time being, an alliance between the two groups, but it may indicate a unique parallel to the growth of the action of radical groups around the world.
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* Image Credit 1: Arnold Platon / Wikimedia Commons
* Image Credit 2: rSnapshotPhotos / Shutterstock.com
By Me. Rodolfo Alves Pena
