Boko Haram attacks on the rise again

Nigeria's northeast is facing a resurgence of Boko Haram attacks, undermining military claims of success and raising fears of a return to peak insecurity, reports The Independent. Since the beginning of the year, the Islamic extremist group has repeatedly overrun military outposts, planted roadside bombs, and raided civilian communities. Boko Haram's insurgency, which began in 2009 with the aim of opposing Western education and imposing a strict interpretation of Islamic law, has become Africa's longest-running conflict. The violence has spread to neighbouring countries and, according to the UN, has led to the deaths of approximately 35 000 civilians and displaced over 2m more. In the latest attack late last week in the village of Gajibo in Borno state, the epicentre of the crisis, the extremists killed nine members of a local militia that supports the Nigerian military, after soldiers deserted the base when becoming aware of the insurgents’ advance, according to the group’s claim and local aid workers. That is in addition to roadside bombs and deadly attacks on villages in recent months.

Boko Haram has since broken into two factions. One of the them is backed by the Islamic State group and is known as the Islamic State West Africa Province, or Iswap. It has become notorious for targeting military positions and has overrun the military on at least 15 occasions this year, killing soldiers and stealing weapons, according to an AP count, experts and security reports. On the other hand, the Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad, or JAS, faction has increasingly resorted to attacking civilians and perceived collaborators, and thrives on robberies and abductions for ransom. In May, Iswap struck outposts in Gajibo, Buni Gari, Marte, Izge, Rann, and launched a twin assault on the Nigeria-Cameroon joint base in Wulgo and Soueram in Cameroon, according to The Independent. Other attacks this year have hit Malam Fatori, Goniri, Sabon Gari, Wajiroko and Monguno, among others. The group often attacks at night. Malik Samuel, senior researcher at non-profit Good Governance Africa, said that Iswap’s success was as a result of its territorial expansion following gains against rival JAS as well as a decentralised structure that has enhanced its ability to conduct ‘co-ordinated, near-simultaneous attacks across different regions’ Samuel said. External support from IS in Iraq and Syria is also a critical resource to the militants, said Samuel, who has interviewed ex-fighters.

Full report in The Independent