Boko Haram (29 page)

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Authors: Mike Smith

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84
  
Yusuf's ‘tafsir' or interpretation, of chapter 9, verses 8–12 of the Qur'an. Translation from Hausa to English by Professor Abubakar Aliyu Liman of Ahmadu Bello University. Video can be found at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y33rL_D_6pw
and
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3NcgQv-LVM
.
85
  
Anonymous, ‘Discourses', p. 128. The committee's report was not released publicly and I have not seen it, but it was obtained by the anonymous academic cited and I am quoting from his account. I have discussed it with him and find what he has written to be trustworthy.
86
  
A recording of the speech is included as part of the ‘martyr' video for the UN suicide bomber, which was obtained by AFP's northern Nigeria correspondent Aminu Abubakar, who translated it from Hausa to English when we initially worked together on the story. I have also watched the video.
87
  
Wikileaks, ‘Nigerian Islamist extremists launch attacks in 4 towns', 28 July 2009; Country Reports on Terrorism 2009, US State Department.
88
  
Ahmad Salkida, ‘Nigeria: sect leader vows revenge',
Daily Trust
(Nigeria), 27 July 2009,
http://wwrn.org/articles/31419/?&place=nigeria
.
89
  
Wikileaks, ‘Nigeria: extremist attacks continue into night', 28 July 2009.
90
  
Human Rights Watch, ‘Spiraling violence: Boko Haram attacks and security force abuses in Nigeria', October 2012.
91
  
Wikileaks, ‘Nigerian government quashes extremists, but not the root of the problem', 29 July 2009.
92
  
Wikileaks, ‘Nigerian military combing for extremists, Boko Haram deputy arrested', 30 July 2009.
93
  
Human Rights Watch, ‘Spiraling violence', p. 35.
3 ‘I Will Not Tolerate a Brawl'
1
 
‘Nigeria President Umaru Yar'Adua “has heart problem”', BBC, 26 November 2009.
2
 
Next
has since gone out of business, but summaries of the story can be found at various sites and in other newspapers, including here: Mike Pflanz, ‘Nigeria in crisis after president left “seriously brain-damaged”',
Telegraph
(UK), 11 January 2010,
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/nigeria/6962983/Nigeria-in-crisis-after-president-left-seriously-brain-damaged.html
.
3
 
‘Nigeria's ailing President Yar'Adua breaks silence', BBC, 12 January 2010.
4
 
Wikileaks, ‘Goodluck Jonathan remains acting President of Nigeria', 26 February 2010. Nigeria's presidency dismissed the contents of the diplomatic cable as ‘largely inaccurate'.
5
 
‘Nigeria governor to be impeached', BBC, 23 November 2005.
6
 
Sanders declined to comment for this book.
7
 
Aminu Abubakar, ‘Islamists free hundreds of inmates in Nigerian jail attack', Agence France-Presse, 8 September 2010.
8
 
Henry Umoru, ‘Boko Haram: arrest Ciroma, Lawal Kaita – Clark',
Vanguard
, 9 August 2012,
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/08/boko-haram-arrest-ciroma-lawal-kaita-clark/
.
9
 
Aminu Abubakar, ‘Gunmen kill three in Nigerian Muslim emir's convoy', Agence France-Presse, 19 January 2013.
10
  
Human Rights Watch, ‘Leave everything to God: accountability for inter-communal violence in Plateau and Kaduna states, Nigeria', December 2013, pp. 48–65.
11
  
Taye Obateru and Daniel Idonor, ‘Jos Xmas Eve Blast: 32 people confirmed dead, 74 hospitalised',
Vanguard
, 26 December 2010,
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/12/jos-xmas-eve-blast-32-people-confirmed-dead-74-hospitalised/
.
12
  
Translation from Hausa by Aminu Abubakar.
13
  
Ola Awoniyi, ‘Bomb attack on Nigerian military barracks kills four', Agence France-Presse, 1 January 2011.
14
  
Quotations from Jonathan noted at the time by my AFP colleague Ola Awoniyi. Used here with his permission.
15
  
Several stories reported this, including: Sule Lazarus, ‘2011: inside Nigeria's expensive presidential primary elections',
Sunday Trust
(Nigeria), 23 January 2011,
http://sundaytrust.com.ng/index.php/news/10548-2011-inside-nigerias-expensive-presidential-primary-elections
.
16
  
Aisha Wakaso, ‘Bomb targeting Nigerian election shatters young lives', Agence France-Presse, 9 April 2011.
17
  
Nigeria Civil Society Election Situation Room, ‘Final Statement on the Presidential Election', 19 April 2011,
http://electionsituationroom.wordpress.com/2011/04/19/civil-society-election-situation-room-final-statement-on-the-presidential-election-tuesday-april-192011/
.
18
  
Human Rights Watch, ‘Nigeria: post-election violence killed 800', 17 May 2011.
19
  
Aminu Abubakar, ‘Nigeria probes deadly blasts after president's inauguration', Agence France-Presse, 30 May 2011.
20
  
Wikileaks, ‘Jonathan tells former president his plans for new INEC commissioners', 23 February 2010.
21
  
Boko Haram is believed to have some form of welfare operation that provides financing to the families of ‘martyrs', but I have not confirmed further details.
22
  
Ahmad Salkida, ‘The story of Nigeria's first suicide bomber',
BluePrint
magazine via Sahara Reporters,
http://saharareporters.com/news-page/story-nigerias-first-suicide-bomber-blueprint-magazine
.
23
  
‘Nigeria Islamists claim suicide bombing', Agence France-Presse, 17 June 2011.
24
  
Salkida, ‘Story'.
25
  
Quotations from a Nigerian Presidency press release, 20 June 2011.
26
  
Aminu Abubakar, ‘Police kill “would-be suicide bomber” in Maiduguri', Agence France-Presse via
Vanguard
(Nigeria), 15 August 2011.
27
  
Joe Brock, ‘Special report: Boko Haram – between rebellion and jihad', Reuters, 31 January 2012.
28
  
‘Mamman Nur: “mastermind” of UN attack in Nigeria', Agence France-Presse, 31 August 2011; Jacob Zenn, ‘Leadership Analysis of Boko Haram and Ansaru in Nigeria',
CTC Sentinel
(US), February 2014.
29
  
Nigerian Department of State Services press release, 31 August 2011.
30
  
Translated from Hausa to English by my AFP colleague Aminu Abubakar, who obtained the video through sources. Some of the quotations were included in our story from 18 September 2011 (Aminu Abubakar and M.J. Smith, ‘Nigerian “bomber” videos emerge as Islamist fears mount', Agence France-Presse, 18 September 2011).
4 ‘That Is How Complex the Situation Is'
1
 
Ola Awoniyi, ‘Bomb at Nigerian church sparks dying pleas for blessings', Agence France-Presse, 25 December 2011.
2
 
‘Jonathan visits Madalla, says “cancerous” Boko Haram wants to kill Nigeria', Agence France-Presse via
Vanguard
, 31 December 2011,
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2011/12/cancerous-islamist-sect-wants-to-kill-nigeria-jonathan/#sthash.J7QK8jMK.dpuf
.
3
 
Ola Awoniyi, ‘Nigeria declares state of emergency', Agence France-Presse, 31 December 2011.
4
 
These quotations were reported to me by a journalist who covered Jonathan's speech for my news agency. Some of the quotes were used in our story (Wole Oyetunji, ‘Nigeria unrest “worse than 1960s civil war”: president', Agence France-Presse, 8 January 2012). Used here with his permission.
5
 
‘We are open to dialogue with Boko Haram – Kwankwaso', Agence France-Presse via
Vanguard
, 27 January 2012,
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/we-are-open-to-dialogue-with-boko-haram-kwankwaso/#sthash.lKfbWEpD.dpuf
.
6
 
Press briefing by Idris after the attacks, which I attended.
7
 
Aminu Abubakar, ‘“At least 80 bodies in morgue” after Nigeria attacks', Agence France-Presse, 21 January 2012.
8
 
Translation from Hausa to English by Aminu Abubakar.
9
 
Aminu Abubakar, ‘German hostage killed in Nigeria during rescue bid', Agence France-Presse, 31 May 2012.
10
  
This is taken from my own reporting in Sokoto the day after the raid.
11
  
The phrase could also be translated as ‘Support Group for Muslims in Black Africa', according to Professor M.A.S. Abdel Haleem of SOAS, University of London.
12
  
Sources who closely follow the group mentioned some of this to me, but also see: ‘Kambar, Barnawi: Qaeda-linked militants with Boko Haram ties', Agence France-Presse, 21 June 2012 and Jacob Zenn, ‘Leadership analysis of Boko Haram and Ansaru in Nigeria',
CTC Sentinel
, February 2014.
13
  
According to the Nigerian military, Kambar was killed in March 2012, even before the USA designated him a global terrorist. The US government has never confirmed this.
14
  
‘Video shows British, Italian hostages “held by Al-Qaeda”', Agence France-Presse, 3 August 2011; ‘British, Italian hostages killed amid Nigerian rescue bid', Agence France-Presse, 8 March 2012.
15
  
House of Commons Official Report, Parliament Debates (Hansard), 13 March 2012, p. 142.
16
  
Press release from Nigeria's Department of State Services, 14 March 2012.
17
  
‘SSS detains 5 with “Al Qaeda-links” over German kidnap', Agence France-Presse via
Vanguard
(Nigeria),
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/03/sss-detains-5-with-al-qaeda-links-over-german-kidnap/#sthash.jVLHl2a3.dpuf
.
18
  
Robert Winnett and Thomas Harding, ‘British hostage killed in failed SBS rescue bid',
Telegraph
(UK), 8 March 2012.
19
  
Press release from DSS.
20
  
House of Commons, p. 142, and ‘Chris McManus killed by kidnappers minutes after rescue mission began', Press Association via
Guardian
(UK), 17 May 2013.
21
  
Press Association, ‘McManus'.
22
  
House of Commons, p. 142.
23
  
Aminu Abubakar, ‘Nigeria grills kidnappers of slain European hostages', Agence France-Presse, 10 March 2012.
24
  
For a detailed look at European governments paying ransoms, see: Rukmini Callimachi, ‘Paying ransoms, Europe bankrolls Qaeda terror',
New York Times
, 29 July 2014.
25
  
UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office, Nigeria Travel Advice,
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/nigeria/terrorism
.
26
  
DSS press release.
27
  
Amnesty International, ‘Nigeria: trapped in the cycle of violence', November 2012.
28
  
Aminu Abubakar, ‘Islamists claim attack that killed 2 Mali-bound Nigerian troops', Agence France-Presse, 20 January 2013.
29
  
Aminu Abubakar, ‘Ansaru claims kidnap of 7 foreigners in Nigeria', Agence France-Presse, 18 February 2013.
30
  
SITE Intelligence Group, ‘Ansar al-Muslimeen announces execution of foreign hostages', 9 March 2013.
31
  
Robert Booth, ‘William Hague says British hostage “likely to have been killed” in Nigeria',
Guardian
(UK), 10 March 2013.
32
  
Aminu Abubakar, ‘Boko Haram video of kidnapped French family emerges', Agence France-Presse, 21 March 2013.

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