Not to be confused with Islamic State – West Africa Province.
Parts of this article (those related to EU and UN designation of Boko Haram as a terrorist group) need to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(April 2024)
Boko Haram
جماعة أهل السنة للدعوة والجهاد Group of the People of Sunnah for Dawah and Jihad
Leaders
Mohammed Yusuf (2002–2009) Abubakar Shekau † (2009–2021) Abu Umaimata (2022–present)
At least 15,000 (Amnesty International claimed, January 2015)[8] 20,000 (Chad claimed, March 2015)[9] 4,000–6,000 (United States claimed, February 2015)[10]
Part of
Islamic State (2015–2016)
Allies
Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (2007–2015) Ansaru (2012–2015) Ansar Dine (2012–2013) MOJWA (2012–2013) Al-Mulathameen (2013)
Opponents
Multinational Joint Task Force
Nigeria
Cameroon[11][12][13][14]
Niger[11][12][13][14]
Chad[11][15]
Ghana
Senegal[16]
Benin (announced)[12][13][14]
Australia
Belarus[17]
Belgium
Canada
China[18]
Croatia
Egypt[19][20]
France
Germany
Netherlands
Poland
Portugal
Russia[21]
Spain
Sweden
Turkey
United States
United Kingdom
Non-state opponents
European Union
Islamic State – West Africa Province
Battles and wars
Boko Haram insurgency
2009 Boko Haram uprising
Battle of Damboa
Battle of Konduga (2014)
January 2015 raid on Kolofata
2015 West African offensive
2015 Niger raid
Battle of Konduga (2015)
Battle of Damasak
Chad Basin campaign
Battle of Sambisa Forest
Insurgency in the Maghreb
Operation Juniper Shield
Mali War
Battle of Gao
Battle of Konna
Operation Serval
Battle of Diabaly
Battle of Ifoghas
Designated as a terrorist group by
See section
v
t
e
Boko Haram insurgency
Boko Haram
Timeline
Military operations
2009 uprising
2011 clashes
Sokoto
Damboa
Chibok
Konduga (2014)
Cameroon
Kolofata
W Africa
Niger (2015)
Konduga (2015)
Damasak
Niger (2016)
Rann
Diffa
Chad Basin
Darak
Boma's Wrath
Garin Giwa
Geidam
Sambisa Forest (2021)
Kwatar Daban Masara
Toumbun Allura Karnawa and Toumbun Gini
Terrorist attacks and massacres
2010
Bauchi
Jos & Maiduguri
Abuja
2011
Bauchi, Maiduguri, Zaria & Zuba
Abuja police HQ
Abuja UN
Damaturu, Kaduna & Maiduguri
Damaturu, Gadaka, Jos & Madalla
2012
Gombi, Mubi, Maiduguri & Yola
Kaduna (Apr)
Damaturu
Kaduna (Jun)
Okene
Mubi
Maiduguri & Potiskum
2013
Kano
Baga
Mamudo
Konduga
Benisheik
Gujba
2014
Maiduguri (Jan)
Chakawa & Kawuri
Kawuri
Konduga massacre
Lake Chad
Izghe
Buni Yadi (Feb)
Abuja DSS
Nyanya (Apr)
Chibok
Nyanya (May)
Gamboru & Ngala
Jos
Buni Yadi (May)
Mubi
Gwoza
Borno
Kaduna & Abuja
Wuse
Maiduguri (Jul)
Damboa
Kogi
Potiskum
School bombing
Maiduguri (Nov)
Damasak
Kano
Gumsuri
Gombe
2015
Malari
Cameroon bus
Baga
Maiduguri (Jan)
Fotokol massacre
Damaturu, Potiskum & Kano
Maiduguri (Mar)
Damasak
N'Djamena
Monguno (Jun)
Borno (30 Jun & 1 Jul)
Potiskum, Jos & Borno
Fotokol bombings
Gombe
Maiduguri & Monguno
Baga Sola
Yola
Chad (Dec)
2016
Bodo
Dalori
Dikwa
Maiduguri (Mar)
Borno (Apr)
Lake Chad
Adamawa
Cameroon
Kuda
Maiduguri (Oct)
Madagali
2017
Maiduguri
Mubi
2018
Konduga
Dapchi
Mubi
2019
Konduga
Nganzai
2020
Gamboru
Toumour
Lake Chad & Borno
Gubio
Monguno and Nganzai
Nguetchewe
Kouyape
Koshebe
Pemi
2021
Maiduguri
Mainok
2022
Kuje
Ngouboua
Boko Haram, officially known as Jamā'at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da'wah wa'l-Jihād[22] (Arabic: جماعة أهل السنة للدعوة والجهاد, lit. 'Group of the People of Sunnah for Dawah and Jihad'),[23] is an Islamist jihadist organization based in northeastern Nigeria, which is also active in Chad, Niger, northern Cameroon, and Mali.[11] In 2016, the group split, resulting in the emergence of a hostile faction known as the Islamic State's West Africa Province.
Founded by Mohammed Yusuf in 2002, the group was led by Abubakar Shekau from 2009 until his death in 2021, although it splintered into other groups after Yusuf's death and also in 2015.[24] When the group was first formed, their main goal was to "purify", meaning to spread Sunni Islam, and destroy Shia Islam in northern Nigeria,[25] believing jihad should be delayed until the group was strong enough to overthrow the Nigerian government.[26] The group formerly aligned itself with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.[27][28] The group has been known for its brutality,[29] and since the insurgency started in 2009, Boko Haram has killed tens of thousands of people, in frequent attacks against the police, armed forces and civilians. It has resulted in the deaths of more than 300,000 children[30] and has displaced 2.3 million from their homes.[31] Boko Haram has contributed to regional food crises and famines.[29]
After its founding in 2002, Boko Haram's increasing radicalisation led to the suppression operation by the Nigerian military and the killing of its leader Mohammed Yusuf in July 2009.[32] Its unexpected resurgence, following a mass prison break in September 2010 in Bauchi, was accompanied by increasingly sophisticated attacks, initially against soft targets, but progressing in 2011 to include suicide bombings of police buildings and the United Nations office in Abuja. The government's establishment of a state of emergency at the beginning of 2012, extended in the following year to cover the entire northeast of Nigeria, led to an increase in both security force abuses and militant attacks.[33][24][34][35]
Of the 2.3 million people displaced by the conflict since May 2013, at least 250,000 left Nigeria and fled to Cameroon, Chad or Niger.[36] Boko Haram killed over 6,600 people in 2014.[37][38] The group has carried out massacres including the killing by fire of 59 schoolboys in February 2014 and mass abductions including the kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls in Chibok, Borno State, Nigeria, in April 2014. Corruption in the security services and human rights abuses committed by them have hampered efforts to counter the unrest.[39][40]
In mid-2014, the militants gained control of swaths of territory in and around their home state of Borno, estimated at 50,000 square kilometres (20,000 sq mi) in January 2015, but did not capture the state capital, Maiduguri, where the group was originally based.[41] On 7 March 2015, Boko Haram's leader Abubakar Shekau pledged allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. According to the BBC, due to internal disputes between the two groups, hundreds of terrorists left Boko Haram and formed their own organization, named "Islamic State's West Africa Province".[42][43][44] In September 2015, the Director of Information at the Defence Headquarters of Nigeria announced that all Boko Haram camps had been destroyed but attacks from the group continue.[45] In 2019, the president of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, claimed that Boko Haram was "technically defeated".[46] Shekau was killed and confirmed to be dead in May 2021.[47]
^ abMorgan Winsor (17 April 2015). "Boko Haram in Nigeria: President Goodluck Jonathan Rejects Help from UN Forces to Fight Insurgency". International Business Times. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
^ abObaji, Jr., Philip (26 May 2015). "With Help From ISIS, a More Deadly Boko Haram Makes a Comeback". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
^"We have restricted Boko Haram to Sambisa Forest – Buhari". 8 September 2015. Retrieved 21 May 2016.
^"DSS: Boko Haram relocating from Sambisa forest to Kaduna". 15 September 2021.
^"Leaked DSS memo shows fleeing Boko Haram terrorists are moving to Kaduna". 15 September 2021.
^Bukarti, Bulama (12 August 2021). "The destructive militant group sowing chaos across Africa". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on 4 September 2022. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
^Klobucista, Claire (8 August 2018). "Nigeria's Battle With Boko Haram". Council on Foreign Relations. Archived from the original on 4 September 2022. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
^"Boko Haram at a glance". Amnesty International. Retrieved 25 January 2015.
^"Boko Haram HQ Gwoza in Nigeria 'retaken'". BBC News. 27 March 2015.
^Hosenball, Mark (6 February 2015). "Nigeria's Boko Haram has up to 6,000 hardcore militants: U.S. officials". Reuters.
^ abcdBureau of Counterterrorism. "Country Reports on Terrorism 2013". U.S. Department of State. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
^ abcCite error: The named reference ngrguardiannews.com was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ abcCite error: The named reference sunnewsonline.com was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ abcCite error: The named reference theguardian.com was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^"Chadian Forces Deploy Against Boko Haram". VOA. 16 January 2015. Archived from the original on 19 January 2015. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
^"Trials in Senegal Expose Possible Terror Sleeper Cells". 3 July 2018.
^Беларусь попала в ТОП-20 мировых лидеров по экспорту вооружений Archived 27 October 2018 at the Wayback Machine – Военно-политическое обозрение, 1 марта 2017
^Cite error: The named reference scmp.com was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^"Egypt Pledges To Support Nigeria in Fight Against Boko Haram • Channels Television". 30 May 2015. Archived from the original on 22 July 2018. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
^"Boko Haram: Egypt assures Nigeria of support – The Nation Nigeria". 20 October 2015. Archived from the original on 22 July 2018. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
^Andrew McGregor (8 May 2019). "Nigeria Seeks Russian Military Aid in its War on Boko Haram". Aberfoyle International Security. Retrieved 28 April 2019.
^"Sayyid Qutb and Nearness With Rafidees: Nawab Safawi Al-Shi'iyy". www.ikhwanis.com. Retrieved 20 August 2021.
^"Is Islamic State shaping Boko Haram media?". BBC News. 4 March 2015. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
^ ab"Boko Haram". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
^"Islamic Movement in Nigeria: The Iranian-inspired Shia group". BBC News. 4 August 2019. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
^Zenna, Jacob; Pierib, Zacharias (Summer 2017). "How much Takfir is too much Takfir? The Evolution of Boko Haram's Factionalization". Journal for Deradicalization (11): 291. ISSN 2363-9849. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
^Cite error: The named reference BokoHaramIS was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^"Nigeria's Boko Haram pledges allegiance to Islamic State". BBC News. 7 March 2015. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
^ abMatfess, Hilary (2017). "Boko Haram: History and Context". Oxford Research Encyclopedia of African History. doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780190277734.013.119. ISBN 978-0190277734. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
^"Northeast Nigeria conflict killed more than 300,000 children: UN". Al Jazeera. 24 June 2021.
^"Nigeria's Boko Haram Kills 49 in Suicide Bombings". www.nytimes.com. Archived from the original on 21 November 2015.
^Cook, David (26 September 2011). "The Rise of Boko Haram in Nigeria". Combating Terrorism Center. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 27 March 2019."There is no doubt that the suppression operation of 2009, and the killing of Muhammad Yusuf by Nigerian security forces in July of that year, was a turning point for Boko Haram."
^Jack Moore (23 April 2015). "Nigerian Military Enter 'Final Stages' of Boko Haram Offensive". Newsweek. Retrieved 2 May 2015.
^"Nigerian army frees hundreds more women and girls from Boko Haram". The Guardian. London. 1 May 2015. Retrieved 2 May 2015.
^"Boko Haram crisis: Nigerian military chiefs given deadline". BBC News. 13 August 2015. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
^Michelle Nichols (25 September 2015). "U.N. appeals for help for Boko Haram displaced; Nigeria a no-show". Reuters. Archived from the original on 28 September 2015. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
^"Nigerian troops were denied guns to fight Boko Haram – Buhari". Vanguard (Nigeria). 18 November 2015. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
^Rose Troup Buchanan (18 November 2015). "Isis overtaken by Boko Haram as world's deadliest terror organisation". The Independent. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
^Glenn Kessler (19 May 2014). "Boko Haram: Inside the State Department debate over the 'terrorist' label". The Washington Post. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
^Cite error: The named reference hrw report was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^"Boko Haram is now a mini-Islamic State, with its own territory". The Telegraph. London. 10 January 2015. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022.
^Cite error: The named reference longwarjournal_2016-10 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference theatlantic_387235 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^"Nigeria's Boko Haram pledges allegiance to Islamic State". BBC News. 7 March 2015. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
^Nnenna Ibeh (9 September 2015). "Boko Haram camps 'wiped out' – Nigerian military". Premium Times. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
^Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference shekaudead was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
BokoHaram, officially known as Jamā'at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da'wah wa'l-Jihād (Arabic: جماعة أهل السنة للدعوة والجهاد, lit. 'Group of the People of Sunnah...
The BokoHaram insurgency began in July 2009, when the militant Islamist and jihadist rebel group BokoHaram started an armed rebellion against the government...
The 2009 BokoHaram uprising was a conflict between BokoHaram, a militant Islamist group, and Nigerian security forces. Violence across several states...
of the BokoHaram insurgency is the chronology of the BokoHaram insurgency, an ongoing armed conflict between Nigerian Islamist group BokoHaram (including...
students aged from 16 to 18 were kidnapped by the Islamic terrorist group BokoHaram from the Government Girls Secondary School at the town of Chibok in Borno...
chopping downing trees for fuel, human agricultural penetration and the BokoHaram jihadist group's activities since 2013 have reduced their numbers since...
BokoHaram kidnapping may refer to: 2014 Gumsuri kidnappings, the kidnapping of 172–185 villagers Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping, the 2014 kidnapping of...
city that are known to be strongholds of BokoHaram are under permanent curfew. On 18 June 2013, BokoHaram militants attacked a school as students were...
against BokoHaram.[citation needed] On 4 February 2015, the Chad Army killed over 200 BokoHaram militants.[citation needed] Soon afterwards, BokoHaram launched...
with their NINs before December 1, 2020. Due to this, on 13 Feb 2020, BokoHaram leader Abubakar Shekau openly threatened Pantami and condemned the new...
the territories previously held by BokoHaram and after the capture of Sambisa Forest, Buhari announced that BokoHaram has been technically defeated. The...
abducted from Chibok by BokoHaram. In May 2014, BokoHaram attacked Chibok again. In November 2014, it was reported that BokoHaram had taken control of...
unemployment rates, and poverty, the BokoHaram group was able to emerge within Nigeria as political protests. BokoHaram is a violent social group that arose...
command of Colonel Thomas Morland. Damaturu has been attacked many times by BokoHaram jihadist insurgents in their violent campaign to establish a caliphate...
Abu Umaimata is a militant who is the leader of BokoHaram, an Islamist militant group involved in an insurgency against Nigeria and other states. Abu...
The BokoHaram-affected states agreed in February 2015 to establish an 8,700-strong Multinational Joint Task Force to jointly fight BokoHaram. By October...
Sunnah (or Izala) movement, and members of BokoHaram might all identify as Sunni, but the Izala and BokoHaram movements have had strong anti-Sufi components...
1965 to 1975 – 19 May 2021) was a Kanuri terrorist who was the leader of BokoHaram, a Nigerian Islamist militant group from 2009 to 2021. He served as deputy...
back to 1953. Today, religious violence in Nigeria is dominated by the BokoHaram insurgency, which aims to establish an Islamic state in Nigeria. Since...
rebels overran Mali in 2012, a concurrent insurgency in Nigeria, led by BokoHaram, began to spread to nearby countries. By 2015, the Mali war had spread...
al-sunnah li-da'wa wa al-jihād), better known by its Hausa name BokoHaram (pronounced [bōːkòːhàrâm], "Western education is sinful"), is a jihadist militant...
BokoHaram in Nigeria's northeast and northwest began in 2009 in concurrence with the conflicts in the region. Abductions by Islamist terrorist Boko Haram...
a section of the park, the Sambisa Forest, was taken over during the BokoHaram insurgency in the early 2010s forcing many fauna to flee; large animals...