Tide Is Turning Against Boko Haram

By IVAN ZHYKARIEV
Staff Writer

Nigeria’s most notorious militant Islamist group Boko Haram, which claimed the lives of thousands in the country and hundreds in the neighboring countries, through rapid insurgencies, is finally on the receiving end of their evildoing.

The President of Nigeria, Goodluck Jonathan, was heard to be saying that Boko Haram would be driven out from the areas they control in about one month.

Optimistic perhaps, however, Nigerian troops allied with Cameroon, Chad and other African Nations, have made significant gains.

The statement came on the back of the news that Nigerian forces had finally managed to push Boko Haram out from Bama in Borno State of northeast Nigeria.

Nigerian government has struggled for years to tame the vicious militant jihadists but their recent organized operations dramatically changed the situation as key towns were liberated from Boko Haram occupation.

“Displaced people in northeastern Nigeria and across borders are in a very dramatic situation, they fear for their lives and are at this point unable to return to their homes,” said Liz Ahua, coordinator Nigerian refugee efforts for the U.N.

Boko Haram means “western education forbidden,” it claimed thousands of lives and enslaved hundreds. In April of 2014, about 200 schoolgirls were abducted, they still remain
missing.

As Nigeri-led coalition against Boko Haram continues, many believe in what Jonathan said a few weeks ago.

“I’m very hopeful that it will not take us more than a month to recover the old territories that hitherto have been in [Boko Haram’s] hands,” said Jonathan. “We never expected that
[Boko Haram] will build up that kind of capacity. We under-rated their external influence. Since after the civil war we’ve not fought any war, we don’t manufacture weapons, so we had to look for help to re-equip our army and the air force.”