After five previous announcements in which the leader of the murderous Islamist terrorist group, Boko Haram was pronounced dead, Nigerians and the international community had good reason to celebrate, understandably, the milestone reached in the war against terror, with the ignominious death of Abubakar Shekau; who died of injuries he sustained in a cross fire with rival breakaway Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP) terrorists, at the Sambisa forest; 55 km southeast of the Borno state capital, Maiduguri. ISWAP, in a statement, appointed Abu-Musad Albarnawy to replace Shekau. The statement read: “Albarnawy immediately takes over all territories that were under Shekau. The immediate replacement of Shekau was a major revenge against Shekau who exhibited highhandedness and ruthlessness against humanity in the Northeast.” Whatever the case, this certainly is no comforting news, because supplanting Boko Haram with a more effective terror outfit creates a strategic opening for ISWAP to threaten Nigeria and the entire region. However, the death of Shekau should be the beginning of an intensified assault on terrorism, if the war must be won completely and Nigeria would be totally safe of terrorists.
Shekau’s death certainly may not mark the end of Boko Haram’s deadly assault on Nigeria as his supporters have already threatened reprisal actions. There is therefore an urgent need for increased vigilance by security forces and the regional anti-terrorism coalition. Deservedly, Shekau suffered an inglorious end for the atrocities of Boko Haram, once the world’s deadliest terrorist group that has killed over 30,000 people in Nigeria and the Lake Chad region. Save for his diehard followers and colleagues, the general consensus is that Shekau died without a vestige of sympathy. Besides his replacement, ISWAP also arrested 30 top commanders that were loyal to Shekau who killed himself with a suicide vest bomb, during the bloody clash. The arrested commanders included the Commander of Parisu, Abdul Bash, Abu Mujaheed of Sabil Huda; Mala Ali of Farisu; Commander of Garin Dambe, Amir Hassana; Mallam Bako of the Hizba; the Commander of Njimiya Falluja, Amir Halid and two other commanders of Gwashke and Garin Abu Asmau, Abu Fatima and Kaka Bk, among others.
With Shekau’s replacement and arrests of 30 of his top commanders, ISWAP has now become the major terrorist group in the Northeast. Shekau’s death also keeps the Sambisa forest, stretching across 60,000 square km and the Lake Chad basin under the control of ISWAP, which means they can weigh decisively on all major access roads to Maiduguri, capital city of Borno state and northeast Nigeria. Far from fixing things, this may well strengthen ISWAP, which seems to be a more organized terrorist outfit which split from Boko Haram. Experts say this spells danger for Nigeria and the region, where the war on terror has raged and metastasized for over a decade.
Unlike previous announcements which turned out to be false positives, this time around, credit for Shekau’s death is not in dispute and the sponsors or patronage of Boko Haram did not try to find a look-alike to perpetuate the myth of Shekau and continue the carnage. The location of Shekau’s hideout in the Sambisa forest is enough to fuel suspicion of a cover-up by the Nigerian military and joint task forces who claimed to have scurried the forests with intelligence gathering reconnaissance flights and still couldn’t locate Shekau, who ironically was just 55km away from Maiduguri. Could it just be that after over 10 years fighting Boko Haram, the Nigerian army is so inept and incompetent; given their failure to locate Shekau even with a $7 million US bounty on his head as one of the world’s most wanted terrorist?
An air of mystery has long surrounded Shekau, ever since he succeeded Muhammad Yusuf, Boko Haram’s founder, who was killed in police custody in 2009. Shekau was said to be 36, others say he may be 44; but such uncertainty even about his age added to his mystique. Shekau may have lacked his predecessor’s charisma yet plainly, he wielded power over an inner circle whose members passed his orders to the foot soldiers. Shekau radicalized Boko Haram and oversaw more deadly and coordinated attacks and kidnappings, most notably the girls of Chibok that drew international condemnation and sparked a global campaign to #BringBackOurGirls. Born in Shekau village in Yobe state, Shekau who was known for using child soldiers and female suicide bombers to blow up towns across Nigeria was fearless just as he was ruthless. He had threatened to enforce Islamic Sharia law in Nigeria and neighboring countries and was so radical that he was feared even among his commanders. Shekau’s passing would mark the end of an era for Boko Haram; which risks splintering into factions. In a strategic realignment, offshoots of the group may perhaps be willing to engage the government in talks that might eventually lead to a ceasefire. The government should seize this opportunity to reach out to Boko Haram with the hope of isolating ISWAP before it consolidates its hold on the entire region. This can be done using back channels without making any noise about it!
The point has been well proven that there can be no hiding place for terrorists anywhere even as the Nigerian government cannot claim victory or used Shekau’s death to assert its might and authority as the self-acclaimed giant of Africa in the same way the United States projected itself as a superior global power when it undertook a surreptitious incursion into Pakistan to eliminate bin Laden without a word to the Pakistanis. It is worth noting however that Shekau and his colleagues saw themselves as freedom fighters defending the cause of Islam. But their approach is wrong. Islam promotes peace whereas they turned themselves into merchants of death and architects of pain and violence. Whatever Shekau did or propagated was against the cause of peace and by deduction, that made him an enemy of the free world. “I… Abubakar Ash-Shakawy, the leader of Jama’atu Ahlissunnah Lidda’awati Wal Jihad, made it a duty for myself (to fight) Nigeria and the whole world,” Shekau said in a video released on August 7, 2016, when Boko Haram declared allegiance to the then so-called Islamic State. His death is good riddance of bad rubbish.
As the world celebrates his exit, the message of Shekau’s deviousness must not be lost on the world that he who lives by the sword, dies by the sword. After killing thousands of innocent men, women and children, Shekau died like a dog! If a breakaway faction can track down and kill Shekau, then this should serve as a lesson to Nigerian leaders. The Nigerian government in particular, can learn from the tenacity of purpose that ISWAP has displayed in the Shekau case. While there is no honor among thieves or terrorists, ISWAP took exception with Shekau’s ruthlessness in ordering the kidnapping and killing of fellow Muslims and decided to take him out. They succeeded where Nigeria with all its huge resources has failed woefully. Going forward, security and intelligence agencies should ensure that Nigeria does not become a safe haven for terrorist organizations and their agents. Now is the time for President Muhammadu Buhari to send a strong signal that no one can violate Nigeria’s national integrity and get away with it. Nigeria should learn to act with such resoluteness in strengthening its internal security systems, and in relating with external stakeholders.
