The Islamist terrorist group Boko Haram is causing fear and horror in Nigeria: Schoolchildren have been kidnapped again and again. The terrorists are demanding the national introduction of Islamic law and forbidding any Western education.
The group is led by Abubakar Shekau (48). This is supposed to be dead now. According to reports from the Nigerian military, Shekau blew himself up in a confrontation with a rival group to avoid capture.
Investigations are ongoing
However, confirmation from Nigeria is still pending. Shekau had already been falsely declared dead in the past, only to later report back to his opponents via video message.
Mohammed Yerima, the spokesman for the Nigerian army, told CNN that the death of the Boko Haram leader was still being investigated by the military.
Suicide instead of submission
According to “CNN” Shekau is said to have been pursued by a splinter group of the Islamic State (ISWAP) to his forest hiding place. There, the terror prince was surrounded by ISIS members who had previously surprised Boko Haram members during Ramadan festivities and incapacitated them.
Shekau had been asked to surrender and submit to the rival terrorist group. An informant told the broadcaster that he ignited his explosives vest.
IS demands a reward
In 2013, the US State Department put a bounty of around 6.3 million Swiss francs on the terror princes. The Islamic State (IS) now wants to claim this for itself, which is now said to be responsible for the death of Shekau.
A tweet from the State Department said: “Hey, you IS people. To be clear, you are not entitled to the reward, even if you provide information about his identity or whereabouts. That’s not how our program works. “
Doom of Boko Haram in sight?
If Shekau was actually killed, it could mean the downfall of the Boko Haram, says Seyi Adetayo, a former officer of the Nigerian State Ministry, to “CNN”.
Many Boko Haram commanders had problems with the leader and had defected to ISWAP in recent years. However, according to Adetayo, the end of the Boko Haram era could mark the beginning of the ISWAP era, “a much stronger enemy”. (une)