Tag: Boko Haram

This Is Africa

Many Americans hold very little knowledge about the continent of Africa…..not because they may not care but because our media shows little interest in the region.

I try to be fair and write about all parts of the world and since I have some loyal visitors from Rwanda, Zambia, Cameroon, Tunisia and Kenya I try to write more often than not.

I have a few stories about both North Africa and the sub-Sahara….first Start with North Africa…..the US is slowly expanding its presence in Tunisia…..

U.S. Africa Command spokesperson confirmed in a Task & Purpose report that Marine Corps Raiders were involved in a fierce battle in 2017 in an unnamed North African country, where they fought beside partner forces against militants of Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM). AFRICOM acknowledged that two Marines received citations for valor but withheld certain details, such as the location—undisclosed due to “classification considerations, force protection, and diplomatic sensitivities.” The command also said the Marine Special Operations unit was engaged while on a three-day train, advise and assist operation. However, subsequent research and analysis strongly suggest U.S. involvement runs much deeper. In fact, the dramatic events described in the award citations obtained by Task & Purpose align with those that took place in Tunisia, which has been combatting a low-level insurgency in its western borderlands for the past seven years. Evidence indicates the battle occurred at Mount Semmama, a mountain range in the Kasserine governorate, near the Algerian border. There, the United States sustained its first casualty in action in Tunisia since World War II.

https://nationalinterest.org/blog/middle-east-watch/america-quietly-expanding-its-war-tunisia-31492

Next stop is the West of the Continent….Nigeria….

Islamic State in Nigeria might kill healthcare workers it has held hostage since March within 24 hours, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said on Sunday, calling for mercy and urging Nigeria’s government to intervene.

Medical workers Hauwa Mohammed Liman and Alice Loksha were working in the town of Rann when they were kidnapped along with ICRC midwife Saifura Hussaini Ahmed Khorsa, who was killed in September, the ICRC said in a statement.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-nigeria-security/islamic-state-in-nigeria-might-soon-kill-health-workers-schoolgirl-icrc-idUSKCN1MO0GA

Speaking of terrorist groups like Boko Haram….women have a role in this organization as well……

Women’s involvement in Boko Haram attacks in the Lake Chad Basin is well known. However their role in the activities of the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), operating across the Sahel, appears to be less direct. What makes these groups include or exclude women from their ranks and operations?

Since it was formed in March 2017, the JNIM, a merger of four terror groups in Mali – Ansar Dine, Katiba Macina, al-Mourabitoun and al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) – has carried out numerous suicide attacks in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.

The group claimed responsibility for the 14 April 2018 attack on the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali and the French operation Barkhane in the Timbuktu region. Following the attack, then Barkhane commander General Bruno Guibert mentioned the involvement of a woman suicide attacker in the operation.

Two weeks later JNIM published a communiqué to deny the allegation, stating that in its doctrinal approach, women do not participate in operations or in combat. The statement said Muslim nations still had enough men willing to take on combat roles.

https://issafrica.org/iss-today/the-role-of-women-in-west-africas-violent-extremist-groups

I am ashamed of what the US and its leaders have done to Africa…..we come to help and end up doing just as much damage as the events were were there to prevent……like the recent visit of Mrs. Trump to Africa……

If Melania really wanted to warn Africans, she would have worn a pantsuit. Hawk Hillary has brought slavery back to Libya, and even was tacky enough to cackle about it on live television. Then there was that 100 million dollar donation to the Clinton Foundation, by Lundin for Africa. Um, is this charity? Lundin is an oil and mining company based in Canada. There was also a 20 million donation to the Foundation from Ethiopia’s repressive leader Meles Zenawi. And ties to businessman Gilbert Chagoury brought along shady land deals in Nigeria. Also of note is her State Department arming of child soldiers in southern Sudan. I mean this could go on and on. Between the Clinton Foundation and an ugly State Department reign, there appears to be pantsuit pollution in about every country in Africa. She’s a basket case of deplorable!

https://www.counterpunch.org/2018/10/12/the-colonial-pantsuit-what-we-didnt-want-to-know-about-africa/

In closing I would like to thank all my visitors from the countries of Africa….I appreciate your loyalty….THANK YOU!

Boko Haram on the Back Foot?

Over a year ago the world was shocked by a group known as Boko Haram when it kidnapped over 250 school girls on a raid on their school.  Social media was frantic blogs were written and the news was dire on the fate of these girls.

In case it has slipped from your memory maybe I can help a wee bit……

About 8 months ago the world was shocked and outraged that 276 young women had been kidnapped by a terror group known as Boko Haram…….six months later no body outside Nigeria could care…

Source: Bring Back Our Girls – In Saner Thought

Today, when was the last time you heard #BeingOurGirlsBack?  My guess is about a year or so….funny how something that meant so much to the world can be crapped on by events elsewhere.

Let me help…..several countries including the Us has sent resources to Nigeria to aid the government in their on-going battle with Boko Haram….no one is saying for sure what those “resources” are….but we helped…and that is what is important, right?

Anyway….there have been stories that the leader of BH has been killed by the Nigerian army and some girls have been rescued….but what about the rest of the girls and what about the terrorist group today?

In case you are interested….and you should be……there has been a report on this situation by the International Crisis Group…….

Boko Haram is losing ground, resources and fighters. But defeating the group and preventing a future insurgency needs more than military success. The 14 May summit in Abuja is an opportunity for Nigeria and its Lake Chad basin neighbours to prepare and implement what’s been long overdue: a holistic response to the extremist group.

Source: Boko Haram on the Back Foot? – International Crisis Group

Just in case you can tear yourself away from the massive silliness of an election……and in case you actually care about what has happened and not just wanting to be part of some trendy crap!

Bring Back Our Girls

About 8 months ago the world was shocked and outraged that 276 young women had been kidnapped by a terror group known as Boko Haram…….six months later no body outside Nigeria could care less….

For an event that turned the world into a ranting, raging machine can be forgotten so easily…..just plain sad.

Source: Abandonment of ‘Bring Back Our Girls’ – Al Jazeera English

The world was outraged as I have said and yet what are they doing about this problem known as Boko Haram?

I am so glad you asked……

A long-awaited regional task force is set to begin raids on Boko Haram’s last enclaves when the rainy season ends soon, the U.N.’s top official in West Africa said.

Nigerian and Chadian forces early this year forced the militant group, which has sworn allegiance to Islamic State, to cede large swathes of territory in northern Nigeria, undermining its six-year campaign to carve out a caliphate.

The 8,700-strong joint force, headquartered in Chad’s capital N’Djamena with troops from Chad, Niger, Benin, Nigeria and Cameroon, was supposed to be fully functional in July.

But plans were not finalised until late August, and some observers have bemoaned a lack of progress since.

The African Union and the Lake Chad Basin Commission signed a memorandum of understanding in October giving final implementation guidelines and the United States has sent troops to provide intelligence and other assistance.

The expected joint raids will have to adapt to the changing nature of the enemy, which once attacked with hundreds of fighters aboard scores of vehicles but has been reduced to isolated bands, Chambas said.

(Reuters)

Finally something will be tried to end the reign of terror that Boko Haram has exerted over the region.

Once the media moved on the world stop caring about the fate of these young women…..that is shameful as well as pathetic that the media has that much power to control people’s concerns.

 

Nigeria: How To De-Fang a Viper

For about a year Boko Haram ran rough shod over the Nigeria Army…..in the north of the country Boko has had its way…..that is until recently.

The Nigerian Army has found a way to take on Boko and win.  They, the Army, has made great strives by recuing about 300 girls and women that had been taken by Boko in the past…..plus Boko seems to be on the run from the onslaught of the Nigerian Army……..

The question now is……what lit the fire under the Nigerian Army to have such successes……..and the answer is…….

 

South African mercenaries’ secret war on Boko Haram – Telegraph.

More Good News From Nigeria

Awhile back the terrorist group Boko Haram kidnapped hundreds of young women……and they have been attacking and kidnapping ever since.  Recently the Nigerian Army rescued about 300 people from Boko Haram and in a stroke of good luck the Army has struck again……..

Another estimated 100 children and 60 women were rescued from Boko Haram yesterday, just a day after another rescue operation freed nearly 300. Nigerian troops ran the rescue operation in Sambisa Forest, during which one of the hostages and one soldier were killed, CNN reports. Troops are now working to destroy militant camps—they’ve hit nine so far—in the forest. “Many of those kidnapped have undergone psychological trauma and indoctrination,” says an army spokesman—and indeed, some of the 293 women and girls rescued earlier in the week had been so indoctrinated by Boko Haram, they actually opened fire on their rescuers, the AP reports.

A counselor who has treated other Boko Haram hostages says this is not uncommon, and that hostages can also become attached to militants they are forced to marry. Experts say many of the rescued women and girls will need intensive psychological treatment. The Nigerian military earlier said the 293 women and girls rescued were not the “Chibok girls” taken more than a year ago, launching the #BringBackOurGirls campaign, but now the army spokesman says it’s too early to tell who they are. “The processing is continuing, it involves a lot of things because most of them are traumatized and you have got to put them in a psychological frame of mind to extract information from them,” he says.

Slowly but slowly the Nigerian Army seems to be capable of taking on Boko Haram and winning…..if their luck keeps up they may soon have all the women and children that have been taken by the group…….

I wish them good hunting.

Nigeria: Speaking Of Moms

I realize that all eyes are on Baltimore and the violence there……but how about I ask a question?  Does anyone remember #BringBackOurGirls?

We  probably but it is not that a big a deal right now, right?

A story that has not been widely publicized in our dynamite media……….

Nigeria’s army says it has rescued 200 girls and 93 women from Boko Haram, reports CNN. In a sign of just how widespread this kind of kidnapping is, however, those rescued do not include the approximately 200 girls taken from a school last year—the ones who drew worldwide attention in the #BringBackOurGirls campaign. “They are not the Chibok girls,” a military spokesman tells AP. The military is interviewing the rescuees now to determine where they’re from. The original news came via a tweet from the Nigerian military announcing that troops rescued the girls and women from the Sambisi Forest.

A feel good story if ever there was one……if it is an accurate report.

So far I have not been able to confirm this…..lots of whispers and rumors…..but not much officially…..I will confirm when I have it in my hands…….

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The Tentacles Of ISIS Expands

Yep every American knows the evil that is ISIS……they know of the killings, the destruction, the bullshit……..and the toads that are trying to sign on to the success of ISIS……but recently one organization has said it will follow where ISIS leads….an organization so evil that it pales some of the violence of ISIS…….that group is in Nigeria and their name rings of evil….Boko Haram.

– the leader of the feared Nigerian terrorist group, Boko Haram, opened a new page in the history of the group when he announced his allegiance to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the self-proclaimed ‘caliph’ and leader of the Islamic State (IS, also known as ISIS or ISIL).

Al-Baghdadi’s acceptance of Shekau’s bay’ah, or pledge of allegiance, has formalised the alliance between two of the world’s most ruthless terrorist organisations. Boko Haram joins a growing number of extremist groups in Egypt, Libya, Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia that have since the beginning of 2014 voluntarily given up their independence by proclaiming the supreme authority of ISIS. Shekau, however, is known for his uncompromising views, raising questions as to how he would respond to orders from al-Baghdadi.

The practice of giving bay’ah has become common among African terrorist groups and is often mistaken to be a sign of weakness or imminent demise. Many factors – including strategic, organisational, leadership and ideological reasons – may account for a group’s decision to pledge loyalty to another.

For ISIS, the alliance will facilitate its African expansion, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, and strengthen al-Baghdadi’s global legitimacy and influence. Boko Haram may also provide an important front for ISIS to attack countries taking part in Obama’s international coalition, set up to ‘degrade and destroy’ the terror group.

The alliance does not augur well for the ongoing regional campaign to contain Boko Haram, as the Islamist sect could get more sophisticated, posing serious operational and tactical challenges to the African Union (AU)-approved multinational joint task force (MNJTF).

Now the world needs to react to this announcement……this cannot bode well for African nations in turmoil….it gives a footing to ISIS……if it goes unchecked then massive destruction and death will follow…..

Dear World:  Do Not F*ck This Up!

Turn The Page!

Nigeria: Return Of The “Wild Geese”

Wild Geese…..Soldiers of fortune……..security consultants…….no matter how we try to fantasize them……by any other name they are….MERCENARIES.

The terrorist organization, Boko Haram, has been running rough shod over Nigeria for a couple of years……the government of Nigeria is doing what nations have done in the past…..hire soldiers from other lands.

 

Nigeria Drafts in Foreign Mercenaries to Take on Boko Haram.

 

I have a suggestion……since the mercenary field has a superb army at its disposal, Blackwater, why not cut a deal with the company to do their fighting for them…….after all….Blackwater has the air power, intel resources and ground troops to wage a substantial conflict.  Plus Nigeria is awash with oil money…maybe now would be a good time to use it for good instead of corruption.

Thoughts?

Nigeria: Let’s Make A Deal

Back in the Summer there was a crisis that swept the social media sites…..it has since been replaced with the Ebola scare….but in the Summer 200+ school girls were kidnapped by a terrorist militia known as Boko Haram…..think back…it will come to you.

Since their kidnapping and a short social media phenom the r4est of the wold moved on…but back in Nigeria the families of the girls have been putting pressure on the government to do something….even of its wrong……

It seems that something has indeed been done…..

A rep for Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan says the country has reached a ceasefire deal with extremist group Boko Haram that secures the release of more than 200 schoolgirls kidnapped in April, CNN reports. “[Boko Haram negotiators] assured that the schoolgirls and all other people in their captivity are all alive and well,” a spokesman said today, according to the AP. What’s still unclear is whether—if the deal really goes through—the girls are being exchanged for militant prisoners. Nigerian authorities had originally said they wouldn’t make such a deal, then seemed to switch course; rumors had been flying up until recently about ongoing negotiations regarding the possibility.

Skeptics still aren’t convinced, Yahoo News reports. They cite previous unkept promises, disbelief that the Boko Haram rep making the negotiations is credible, and the fact that it’s widely believed Jonathan will announce his re-election bid soon—meaning optimistic news like this could help his campaign. Boko Haram has been bombarding Nigeria with its terror tactics—including kidnapping, bombing, and the killing of political leaders—in an effort to force strict Sharia law upon the country’s people, notes CNN.

So far there has been NO real confirmation of this deal….but there is hope and prayers that it is true……

Terrorism: Jealousy Is An Ugly Thing

Opinion from the desk of the Editor:

 

I am not talking about the atrocities these animals perpetrate on innocent people….not the beheading, executions, suicide bombers the whole list of despicable tactics…..NO the ugly I am speaking of in this piece is the…..JEALOUSY!

Yes, the terrorist of the different organizations are starting to get jealous over the press one is getting over the other.  It appears that some of these groups are pretending to be the defender of Islam and are committing crimes in the name of the religion knowing this will feed the hate and in turn make there acts ‘newsworthy’.

Thanks to the press ISIS has gotten all the free press lately, at least for the last couple of months….their quick rise to prominence, the beheading, the crimes like executions, kidnapping and selling women for profit….the press has gone all out to emphasize their crimes.

ISIS is drawing lots of attention from the other groups wanting the fame and notoriety…..and the groups are starting to throw everything into their trip back to the ‘top’…………like al-Qaeda………

With an even more brutal group of Islamic extremists capturing the world’s attention, is al-Qaeda feeling neglected? In what analysts see as an effort to grab the spotlight from ISIS, al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri has announced the formation of an Indian branch of the terror network that will “raise the flag of jihad” across the region, reports Al Jazeera. In a 55-minute video posted online, Zawahri called the new entity the “fruit of a blessed effort of more than two years to gather the mujahedeen in the Indian subcontinent” and vowed to bring Islamic law to the entire region.

Al-Qaeda disowned ISIS early this year, and while Zawahri didn’t mention the former affiliate by name, he appeared to be taking swipes at it with comments like “Discord is a curse and torment, and disgrace for the believers and glory for the disbelievers,” reports Reuters. Three Indian states with high Muslim populations have been placed on alert, though it’s not clear how much of a threat the new entity is. Al-Qaeda “is struggling for its legitimacy in the eyes of the radicalized Muslim world,” a top Indian security analyst tells the AP. Osama bin Laden is dead, and al-Qaeda’s “entire top leadership, apart from Zawahri and a few others, one by one have been decimated by the American drone attacks,” the analyst says.

Since the death of Osama the group has lost some of its luster and now they are tring to climb back on top and this could be their start or opening salvo, if you will.

AQ is not the only jealous group……remember back months ago and we were introduced to Boko Haram after they kidnapped a bunch of young girls….well since then they have continued their reign of terror in Nigeria with more kidnappings, the random killing of innocent civilians, attacks on military units and in all that time their leader has said that if there was going to be a caliphate then he would be the one to establish it…..

Thousands of refugees are fleeing northeast Nigeria into Cameroon, the U.N. refugee agency reported Wednesday, as extremists pursue a new strategy to hold land they are calling an “Islamic caliphate.”

Hundreds of Cameroonians also are abandoning their homes since Nigerian Islamic extremists last week began attacking villages in the neighboring country, UNHCR spokeswoman Helene Caux told The Associated Press.

In one instance Boko Haram fighters slit the throats of three people found in a Catholic Church in the Cameroonian village of Assighassia, she said. That also is a new tactic for Boko Haram, which previously had only kidnapped Cameroon citizens for ransom.

As you can see the major groups are jockeying for position as the world’s most brutal terrorist organization…..jealousy is an ugly thing…..and especially when it is between terrorist groups trying to out brutal each other all in a desperate need for the world’s attention.

Obama and Biden as well as other world leaders have thumped their chest and said that they will “destroy ISIS”….a lovely promise but the problem is that once destroyed there will be another to take it’s place and we start this whole exercise all over again.

The cycle will remain unbroken.