Page 13 - Voice of the Persecuted Christians - Oct-Dec 2022 - 120

Boko Haram was designated the deadliest terrorist organisation in the world in 2018
preaching and Jihad), popularly called Boko Haram, are not the only radical Islamist sect in the country. There are at least six different sects currently, according to Nigeria’s security agencies. These include Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) al- Qaeda, Fulani Islamist militia groups and Sara Suka among others. Boko Haram copied the Islamist terrorist group ISIL, using social media for
said to be the fourth deadliest group, according to the Global Terrorism Index, has killed over 3,000 people between January and June this year. It has destroyed over 300 villages
Nigeria is fast drifting into a failed state. The growing anarchy, the high level of insecurity and the inability of the Government to provide social and economic security to its citizens have generated speculation that Nigeria, in its current state, will not survive for long as a united entity. Another civil war could destabilise the whole West Africa region but impact the wider world, particularly Europe, with an influx of refugees.
its propaganda and its attack on the United Nations building in Abuja, Nigeria, as well as its abduction of the Chibok schoolgirls, which raised its profile on the international stage. The Global Terrorism Index named Boko Haram the deadliest terrorist organisation in the world in 2018.
More recently, the Ansaru Islamic terrorist group has been active in the Sahel region together with al-Qaeda in the Maghreb. This group has
In terms of persecution, the biggest concern is whether the churches in northern Nigeria can survive another decade of this intense violence. Currently over 3,000 churches have been destroyed in northern Nigeria, according to CAN.
Boko Haram’s declared mission statement, in its very first propaganda video in 2010, was to attack and
kill Christians and destroy anything that it deems as ‘western’, that is, democracy and ‘western education’ introduced by Christian missionaries in Nigeria.
It is now clear that the Nigerian Government lacks the political
will and the security forces have been weakened by both political compromises and corruption among senior ranking officers, who, as Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has pointed out, were mostly promoted and positioned based
Pastors have been targeted and killed and worship services have been attacked by gunmen. Christian schools have been attacked and many forced to close. Analysts estimate that over three million children have been forced out
The radical Fulani Islamist militia
are affiliated to Boko Haram and its ideology and have targeted Christian villages in central Nigeria. The group,
on religious affiliation. The Army
has proven its lack of capacity to effectively and professionally execute its duty to defend Nigeria’s citizens.
of school by these attacks. The persecution has risen to a genocidal level which, unfortunately, the international community has chosen to ignore.
in Southern Kaduna, Plateau, Benue and Taraba states and displaced more than 1.3 million people.
been operating in communities and villages in southern Kaduna state, killing, raping and kidnapping for ransom.
Analysts have repeatedly said that
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