Galtung Triangle - Boko Haram
Boko Haram is one of the largest Islamist militant group in Africa and has been a significant source of conflict in Nigeria since 2011. The Council on Foreign Relations estimates more than 37, 500 people were killed, 2.5 million displaced in the Lake Chad Basin and nearly 244,000 nigerian refugees as a result of the Boko-Haram-led terrorist attacks and kidnappings. The source of Nigeria’s corruption and injustice was the contradiction that led to this conflict. Boko Haram holds the ideological belief that Western influences are at fault for the corruption and wealth disparity. Boko Haram sought to instead impose the islamic law, sharia. The name Boko Haram literally means “Westernization is sacrilege” in Hausa.
When this Islamist militant group first emerged its operations consisted of relatively peaceful protests but a violent encounter with the police force in 2009 killled their leader Muhammed Yusuf, inciting rage and radicalization. In response to the police force’s alleged excessive use of force against them and the lack of investigation into the matter, Boko Haram proceeded to attack and kill police officers. The army was brought in and together the Military and Taskforces killed 700 Boko Haram members and their Mosque Headquarters. Boko Haram went undercover for a year following this attack and then reemerged under the new leader Abubakar Shekau with the goal of avenging the deaths of Yusuf and the other members.
There were many different attitudes and assumptions that led to the groups' surge of violence and as with every conflict, two different opinions on who is to blame. On one side, it could be argued that Boko Haram simply wanted to improve the corrupt climate in Nigeria and their intentions were misjudged by the police who then acted with inappropriate violence forcing Boko Haram to retaliate. On the other hand, the police rightly calculated the violent potential of the group and sought to eliminate threat before it could grow. Either way, the result was major conflict in Nigeria.
The following behaviour on behalf of Boko Haram was to launch larger, more frequent, and more dangerous attacks. Their primary targets were the police, military, government, and Christian churches and schools. The militant group organized suicide bombings, assasinations, prison breakouts, and mass kidnappings. One major event was the suicide bombing at the United Nations building in the Nigerian capital Abuja that killed 23 people and injured another hundred. The behavior from the Nigerian government was to use military confrontation. They drove Boko Haram out of many large cities without shying away from extrajudicial violence or killings.
When this Islamist militant group first emerged its operations consisted of relatively peaceful protests but a violent encounter with the police force in 2009 killled their leader Muhammed Yusuf, inciting rage and radicalization. In response to the police force’s alleged excessive use of force against them and the lack of investigation into the matter, Boko Haram proceeded to attack and kill police officers. The army was brought in and together the Military and Taskforces killed 700 Boko Haram members and their Mosque Headquarters. Boko Haram went undercover for a year following this attack and then reemerged under the new leader Abubakar Shekau with the goal of avenging the deaths of Yusuf and the other members.
There were many different attitudes and assumptions that led to the groups' surge of violence and as with every conflict, two different opinions on who is to blame. On one side, it could be argued that Boko Haram simply wanted to improve the corrupt climate in Nigeria and their intentions were misjudged by the police who then acted with inappropriate violence forcing Boko Haram to retaliate. On the other hand, the police rightly calculated the violent potential of the group and sought to eliminate threat before it could grow. Either way, the result was major conflict in Nigeria.
The following behaviour on behalf of Boko Haram was to launch larger, more frequent, and more dangerous attacks. Their primary targets were the police, military, government, and Christian churches and schools. The militant group organized suicide bombings, assasinations, prison breakouts, and mass kidnappings. One major event was the suicide bombing at the United Nations building in the Nigerian capital Abuja that killed 23 people and injured another hundred. The behavior from the Nigerian government was to use military confrontation. They drove Boko Haram out of many large cities without shying away from extrajudicial violence or killings.
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