Revealed! - Why Boko Haram Is So Strong

Boko Haram  terrorists are waging the most brutal insurgency in Africa. They have captured a lot of territories and have killed a vast number of people. Officials estimate that some three million people are affected by the terrorists and here are 5 points according to the  International Crisis Group why Boko Haram is so strong.

1. Boko Haram has a lot of separate groups.
It is known that the Boko Haram is split into numerous factions, operating in northern and central Nigeria. Estimates of the International Crisis Group (ICG) shows that six the most organised and ruthless groups are in Borno state, where Boko Haram has captured large swathes of territory.

It first sends hundreds of foot-soldiers into a town or village. Often overwhelmed due to inadequate supplies, the Nigerian army flees, paving the way for elite militant fighters to enter and conquer the territory.
2. They recruit fighters.
The ICG informs that increasingly through conscription – villagers are forced to join en masse or risk being slaughtered. It is also relying on criminals and thugs, paying them for attacks, sometimes with a share of the spoils.

 With ethnic loyalties strong in Nigeria, most Boko Haram fighters are Kanuri – the ethnic group to which the group’s leader Abubuakar Shekau belongs – suggesting that he has influence over some traditional rulers in north-eastern Nigeria.

3. Financial support

While Boko Haram raids towns, it often loots banks. In 2012, the Nigerian military accused Boko Haram of extorting money from businessmen, politicians and government officials, and threatening them with abduction if they fail to pay up.

4.Arms supply
Boko Haram has overrun many police stations and military bases in Nigeria, giving it a huge arsenal – including armoured personnel carriers, pickup trucks, rocket-propelled grenades and assault rifles. And, according to the ICG, it has forged ties with arms smugglers in the lawless parts of the vast Sahel region.

 Some of its weapons are suspected to have come from Libya, where arms depots were looted when Colonel Muammar Gaddafi’s regime was overthrown in 2011. However, most of Boko Haram’s bombs are relatively crude, made from local materials that are easy and cheap to obtain, the ICG says. Some of its bomb-makers, according to Nigeria-based security analyst Bawa Abdullahi Wase, are local university graduates who joined the group in desperation, after failing to find jobs.

 5. Links with ISIS
Shekau praised Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in a video released last year, referring to him as “Oh caliph”. He has also praised al-Qaeda’s Ayman al-Zawahiri, the IS leader’s rival for the loyalty of worldwide jihadists. However, Shekau has not pledged allegiance to either group. While he often speaks in a mix of Hausa, Arabic and Kanuri, his most recent video – where he praised the Paris attacks – was entirely in Arabic, leading analysts to suggest the Nigerian sect is seeking international appeal.