Boko Haram Continues to Enact Terror in Nigeria 

Molly Whittington, Online Staff Writer

November 6, 2020

 As the world turns a blind eye, Boko Haram continues to enact terror in Nigeria. Boko Haram, which translates to “Western Education is Forbidden” in the Hausa dialect,  is a jihadist terrorist group that has been active in Nigeria since the early 1990’s. Their attacks on the country in attempts to overthrow the secular government  have taken the lives of thousands of Nigerians. Since the high profile abduction of two hundred and seventy six schoolgirls in 2014, there has been little news coverage on Boko Haram and the attacks they have committed in Nigeria and surrounding countries. In recent years, the Nigerian government has been condemned by Amnesty International for failing to protect the citizens of Nigeria against the violence and brutality that Boko Haram has committed. International silence has been amplified in light of the recent national protests to end the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), a government task force that has been found to have high rates of brutality and has been condemned by Amnesty International for extortion, rape and torture. In order to protect the citizens,  the government of Nigeria must be held accountable by international forces. 

In 2020, Boko Haram committed two fatal attacks that took the lives of over one hundred and eleven people in Borno state, in the North-eastern region of the country.  First, on February 11th, Boko Haram militants set fire to the vehicles of sleeping travelers. Thirty people were killed including a pregnant woman and child. However, the public outrage and international intervention were nowhere to be found.  On June 9th, eighty one civilians were murdered in an attack on the northeastern town of Faduma Kolomdi, after a group of Boko Haram militants posed as religious teachers and then opened fire on the town.  Little news coverage was found on the attack, and although Amnesty International sounded alarms, little action has been taken to affront the continued violence and brutality.

Amnesty International reports that there has been little progress in recent years for “securing accountability for human rights violations and abuses committed by Boko Haram”. The United Nations reports that “more than 250,000 people have already been displaced from Northeast Nigeria, and surging militant attacks targeting civilians have forced thousands more to run for their lives each day”. As violence continues, hundreds and thousands of lives are uprooted and thousands more are killed, both national and international forces have done little to protect innocent civilians, forecasting violent and dangerous years ahead for the country.  The United Nations has condemned the actions of the Boko Haram group and has voiced its support for the Nigerian government in fighting the terrorist attacks, but has had difficulty in keeping the government of Nigeria accountable, and has had little support from other states.

Boko Haram held international attention and horror for a brief moment when they abducted two hundred and seventy six schoolgirls from the town of Chibok in the south of Nigeria. On the eve of April 15th, 2014, the girls were taken from the Government Girls Secondary School. Chibok, a small town with a majority Christian population, was the target of attacks for years. The abduction  gained international attention from celebrities and international aid organizations alike, prompting the hashtag, #BringBackOurGirls.  As all eyes were on Chibok, international pressure was put upon the Nigerian government to find the missing girls and to bring justice to the families.

Amnesty International announced that the Nigerian military had a four hour warning prior to the abduction. They failed to intervene in the attack and save the girls from being abducted and faced international condemnation because of it. Netsanet Belay, Amnesty International’s Africa Director, Research and Advocacy wrote “The Nigerian leadership must now use all lawful means at their disposal to secure the girls’ safe release and ensure nothing like this can happen again”. In addition to worldwide pressure, China, Britain, the United States and other equipped nations stepped in to help in the search for the girls. The aid from the United States included” the creation of a "coordination cell" to provide intelligence, investigations and hostage negotiation expertise”.  After the abduction, the Multinational Joint Task Force was reestablished by the African Union Commission, with the goal of protecting Nigeria and surrounding countries against Boko Haram. With a cost of 50 million Euros, the Task Force was commissioned with protecting the country by increasing patrols and actively searching for all abductees. The Multinational Joint Task Force has had very little success in keeping the Boko Haram attacks under control. Since 2014, little international attention has been on the increasingly violent state, and the lack of accountability on the Nigerian government has allowed for a long period of inaction.   

It is clear that the public accountability kept Nigeria active in the protection of its civilians, and with less and less public coverage of the devastation in the country, the government has become much less active, both in combating Boko Haram attacks and in controlling its own forces.  The UN has been called upon the Multinational Joint Task Force to see “a more active interaction” in the operationalization of the task force. While some of the girls abducted in 2014 were returned home, one hundred and twelve girls are still missing. Five years later, and without answers for their parents, the search for the girls seems to have come to a halt. Recent attacks have not been publicized, and there has been little aid from other states. Amnesty International, the United Nations, and other powerful international governmental and non-governmental actors must continue to put pressure on the Nigerian government to ensure they are protecting their civilians. Additionally, international organizations must make a solidified effort to intervene and protect civilians with increased humanitarian aid to the region. After the international horror of the 2014 abduction, the world must not forget the dangers facing Nigerians every day.

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