Boko Haram declares war on Emirs, Governors, others

Boko Haram leader, Abubakar Shekau

The group admitted that many of its members had been killed by security forces.
The Islamic insurgent group, Jama’atu ahlis sunnah lil daawati wal jihad, popularly known as Boko Haram, has declared a full scale war on Northern leaders, governors, and officials in authority.
In an Hausa language video by its leader, Abubakar Shekau, posted on YouTube, the group said it would begin to target the leaders.
“This message is for those in authority (Emirs, Governors, and people in authority). Wallahi you have no resting place again and no resting time again, either we are here or we are not,” the group said.
Mr. Shekau did not elaborate on the group’s reason for deciding to target Northern leaders, but said “you (the Northern leaders) have messed up yourselves and you have messed up your own situation.”
No negotiation with government
The insurgents also condemned what they described as the lies of negotiations with government officials. Mr. Shekau said his group was not negotiating and had no plans to negotiate with the government.
“The claim that we are negotiating with the state is untrue, that is the figment of their imagination.” He said. “We are not in dialogue with anyone, but this seems to feed their taste or their appetite for disinformation.”
While denying peace negotiation, the Boko Haram leader admitted that some of their members had been killed by security operatives.
“All I can confirm is that they are killing us rather than dialoguing with us,” he said.
Attack on Women
Mr. Shekau also accused the security operatives of targeting female members of the sect. He alleged that the women are tortured after incarceration by security agencies.
“As at Saturday when I made this video, between 7 and 10 of them (women) have been incarcerated,” Mr. Shekau said. “We don’t know where they are kept or what they are doing to them.”
“But as Muslims, we know what unbelievers do to women …Now, married women are victims of State terror,” he added.
The Boko Haram leader said his group would retaliate by focusing its attack on women related to security and state officials.
Condemns “anti- Islam” video
Mr. Shekau also condemned the video, made by an Israeli –American, which ‘dishonours’ Prophet Muhammed.
“I have words for you (the makers of the video). All these have no impact on the prophet you know, however you wait and see what the consequences will be for you,” he said.
We are still strong
The Boko Haram leader also claimed that the alleged arrest or killing of the group’s spokesman, Abu Qaqa, and other leaders, was not true. Even though he admitted to the killing of many of its members, Mr. Shekau claimed the group’s leadership is still intact.
“The most bogus of these claims is that the leadership of our group has been decimated or arrested,” Mr. Shekau states while laughing. “It is probably the leadership of the rogue group that they killed which they created in the first place.”
He said Abu Qaqa, the group’s spokesman is alive and that any information to the contrary was false.
“You can go ahead and even declare that this broadcast is fiction,” he said.
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