Islamists in Boko Haram seek to destroy Nigeria from within by sowing the seeds of religious hatred and usurping traditional Islam. It is clear that the armed forces of Nigeria have a very difficult task because of the sheer size of the area embroiled by regular terrorist attacks. Also, the militant Islamist forces of Boko Haram can manipulate the borders of several nations in order to prepare fresh attacks in Nigeria – or in order to seek a haven after killing indiscriminately.
In another brutal Islamist terrorist attack Christians were singled out after being ordered of a minibus. This happened near the city of Jos. Once individuals were ordered from the minibus they were asked about their religious beliefs. After five Christians declared they follow God and the Christian faith they were brutally murdered by Sunni Islamist fanatics belonging to Boko Haram.
This type of attack is familiar in Pakistan because Sunni Islamist extremists have singled out Shia Muslims from buses on several occasions and then brutally murdered them. Yet the growing depravity of Boko Haram is reaching saturation point because local Muslims are also being killed in vast numbers for resisting sectarianism and Islamist militancy. Indeed, it appears that the Takfiri strain within Boko Haram is similar to several Sunni Islamist terrorist groups in Syria which murder non-Sunni Muslims and Sunni Muslims alike. After all, in the world of Takfiri fanatics then everybody is deemed an infidel unless you follow their draconian and warped view of religion.
Emmanuel Sunday, a technical school student, managed to escape from the brutal attack. He told Morning Star News that he was stopped after riding his motorbike near to where events were happening. He states that“When I told them I was a Christian, they asked me to join a group of people already ordered to lie down by the side of the road. I did as I was ordered to do, and then one of the men came and searched me and took money from me, including my mobile phone.”
“It was when the gunmen started shooting and killing those of us that were Christians grouped together that I ran into a nearby maize farm, because it was already dark. They shot wildly at me, but I escaped unhurt, except the injuries I sustained while running in the bush.”
According to reports Boko Haram is also fanning ethnic tensions by utilizing members of the Fulani who have land disagreements and so forth in this part of Nigeria. Indeed, Pastor Pam Jang Pam, who serves the local community near to where the attack took place, states that attackers “were a combined band of ethnic Fulani herdsmen and Islamic extremist mercenaries.”
Meanwhile the armed forces of Nigeria are reported to have killed over fifty Islamist terrorists after raiding several Boko Haram camps. Apparently the military tracked down Boko Haram militants after they had previously killed around twenty people in earlier attacks during the week. All these events took place in north-eastern Nigeria.
The army spokesperson, Lt-Col Sagir Musa, reported from Maiduguri that “Troops pursued the terrorists to their camps and destroyed them with air support.”
It is abundantly clear that President Goodluck Jonathan, the military and various intelligence agencies in Nigeria must be do more. This applies to stemming the tide of Islamist indoctrination, the prevention of more advanced military arms reaching Boko Haram and various splinter groups/factions – and to stop the ratlines linking Gulf petrodollars and al-Qaeda with Western Africa. After all, while killing around fifty Islamist terrorists is welcome news this only happened after Boko Haram had butchered twenty civilians in Gajiram and Bulabilin Ngaura (both within certain distances of Maiduguri).
Recently local Muslims are trying to stop Boko Haram from killing and terrorizing people however they are in no position to do some because of lack of military arms. Therefore, Boko Haram have been killing local Muslims and targeting anyone involved in trying to stem their barbarity. This reality highlights a failure on behalf of the political leadership in Nigeria and the armed forces – because if you are going to use the local population then they need military arms to protect themselves. Of course, the danger of this is that events will spiral even more out of control.
It is therefore imperative that the government takes full responsibility for defending the people of Nigeria from Boko Haram and other terrorist forces. Similarly, it is also essential that the armed forces are supported to the hilt because Islamist insurgencies are very brutal. Likewise, it is essential that the armed forces and security agencies can stem the flow of military arms from reaching Boko Haram.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-23992955
http://www.bosnewslife.com/30181-islamists-kill-five-nigeria-christians-in-roadside-attack
leejay@moderntokyotimes.com
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