Shekau announcing Boko Haram's abduction of 276 Nigerian schoolgirls, video from May 2014.
Born
Between 1965 and 1975[1] Shekau, Tarmuwa, Yobe State, Nigeria
Died
19 May 2021 (aged 46–56) Sambisa Forest, Borno State, Nigeria
Allegiance
Boko Haram (2002–2021) Islamic State (fully 2015–2016; loosely from 2016)
Years of service
2002–2021
Rank
Leader (2009–2021)
Battles/wars
Boko Haram insurgency
2009 Boko Haram uprising
January 2015 raid on Kolofata
2015 West African offensive
2015 Niger raid
Chad Basin campaign (2018–2020)
Battle of Sambisa Forest (2021) †
Abu Mohammed Abubakar al-Sheikawi (also known by the alias Darul Akeem wa Zamunda Tawheed, or Darul Tawheed; "the abode of monotheism"; 1965 to 1975[1] – 19 May 2021) was a Kanuri terrorist who was the leader of Boko Haram, a Nigerian Islamist militant group from 2009 to 2021.[2][3] He served as deputy leader to the group's founder, Mohammed Yusuf, until Yusuf's execution in 2009.
Nigerian authorities believed that Shekau was killed in 2009 during clashes between security forces and Boko Haram until July 2010, when Shekau appeared in a video claiming leadership of the group.[3] He had subsequently been regularly reported dead and was thought to use doubles.[4][5][6]
Shekau has been criticized by human rights advocates for terrorism, bombings, forced conversions and kidnapping.
In March 2015 Shekau pledged allegiance to ISIL leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. However, in 2016, ISIS Central tried to replace Shekau with Abu Musab al-Barnawi as leader of the group, causing a split. Shekau's loyalists were called Boko Haram and al-Barnawi's loyalists were known as Islamic State's West Africa Province. Shekau was a Salafi, until 2016, when he ended his relation to ISIL.[7] Relations between Shekau and
ISIS declined, and in 2021 ISIS launched a major operation against Shekau and his supporters.
Shekau killed himself on 19 May 2021 by detonating a suicide vest during the battle of Sambisa Forest between Boko Haram and Islamic State's West Africa Province.[8] His death was first reported by The Wall Street Journal and was confirmed by Nigerian officials, ISWAP, and his surviving loyalists.[9][10]
^ ab"Rewards for Justice – Wanted". www.rewardsforjustice.net. Archived from the original on 7 July 2021. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
^Brock, Joe (12 January 2012). "Nigeria sect leader defends killings in video". Reuters Africa. Thomson Reuters. Archived from the original on 15 January 2012. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
^ abJacinto, Leela (13 January 2012). "The Boko Haram terror chief who came back from the dead". France 24. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
^"Boko Haram militant leader is dead, Nigerian military says". France 24. 25 September 2014. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
^"Nigeria army claims death of Boko Haram leader". www.aa.com.tr. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
^Akinyelure, Didi (27 September 2016). "Dead or alive? The six lives of Boko Haram's leader". BBC News. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
^Collective Mobilisations in Africa / Mobilisations collectives en Afrique: Enough is Enough! / Ça suffit!. BRILL. 1 June 2015. p. 338. ISBN 9789004300002.
^Hinshaw, Drew; Parkinson, Joe (21 May 2021). "Boko Haram Leader, Responsible for Chibok Schoolgirl Kidnappings, Dies". The Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
^"Abubakar Shekau's Boko Haram Faction Confirms Death Of Leader, Issues Fresh Threats". Sahara Reporters. 15 June 2021. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
^Ahmad Salkida (5 June 2021). "ISWAP Confirms Shekau's Death, Says Its Fighters Were Following ISIS Orders". Humangle. Retrieved 5 June 2021.
"Nigeria's Boko Haram leader AbubakarShekau in profile". BBC News. 9 May 2014. BBC: "Nigeria's Boko Haram leader AbubakarShekau in profile" 9 May 2014 "Curbing...
Province. Founded by Mohammed Yusuf in 2002, the group was led by AbubakarShekau from 2009 until his death in 2021, although it splintered into other...
leadership of the sect from AbubakarShekau, contradicting reports from Boko Haram's spiritual leader, Imam Liman Ibrahim that Shekau had been killed and Abu...
autonomous groups and started an insurgency, though rebel commander AbubakarShekau managed to achieve a kind of primacy among the insurgents. Though challenged...
casualties, AbubakarShekau, a former deputy of Mohammed Yusuf, appeared in a video posted on YouTube.[citation needed] According to Reuters, Shekau took control...
believed to be from Nigeria. When the previous leader of Boko Haram, AbubakarShekau, was killed in the battle of Sambisa Forest of 2021, the group splintered...
Chongxi Enver Hoxha Three Pashas Vladimir Lenin Joseph Stalin Adolf Hitler Mao Zedong Pol Pot Kim Il-sung AbubakarShekau Xi Jinping Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi...
of Boko Haram, AbubakarShekau had been deposed by factions within the group due to his "harsh" methods. Ibrahim claimed that Shekau had been given a...
Boko Haram leader AbubakarShekau claimed responsibility for the kidnappings in a video released shortly after 1pm on 5 May. Shekau claimed that "Allah...
Boko Haram terrorist sect. He took power after the supposed death of AbubakarShekau, and initiated peace talks with the Nigerian government. His current...
move molecules around in three-dimensional space easily and see them" AbubakarShekau, the leader of the Nigerian Islamist militant group Boko Haram, has...
fighting. It was initially reported that Boko Haram vice-chairman AbubakarShekau had been killed, but he was later reported alive. Nigerian policemen...
and spectacular air raid" on 19 August had killed Boko Haram leader, AbubakarShekau, the fourth time they have said so, along with three other top commanders...
factions which no longer operated under a unified leadership. Though AbubakarShekau eventually became the preeminent commander of the movement, he never...
group's new leader, due to disagreements with AbubakarShekau's leadership. This was rejected by Shekau and his supporters, who continued to operate independently...
her. Responsibility for the attack was claimed by Boko Haram leader AbubakarShekau. The number of attackers involved has varied between reports, but one...
Chongxi Enver Hoxha Three Pashas Vladimir Lenin Joseph Stalin Adolf Hitler Mao Zedong Pol Pot Kim Il-sung AbubakarShekau Xi Jinping Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi...
Chongxi Enver Hoxha Three Pashas Vladimir Lenin Joseph Stalin Adolf Hitler Mao Zedong Pol Pot Kim Il-sung AbubakarShekau Xi Jinping Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi...
the wreckage of an Alpha Jet, 1 year after, it crashed in Sambisa. AbubakarShekau (2015) factsheet: Sambisa Game Reserve BirdLife International, Important...
extending its control to over 70% of Borno State, while its leader, AbubakarShekau, claimed responsibility for the massacre in a video statement, saying...
Chongxi Enver Hoxha Three Pashas Vladimir Lenin Joseph Stalin Adolf Hitler Mao Zedong Pol Pot Kim Il-sung AbubakarShekau Xi Jinping Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi...
Wusasa area of Zaria where he was pronounced dead. Boko Haram leader AbubakarShekau claimed responsibility for the shooting. The man sheikh Albani Daily...
Chongxi Enver Hoxha Three Pashas Vladimir Lenin Joseph Stalin Adolf Hitler Mao Zedong Pol Pot Kim Il-sung AbubakarShekau Xi Jinping Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi...
Global Information
Islamic State (fully 2015–2016; loosely from 2016)