Boko Haram pledged allegiance to the Islamic State last February, and changed its name to the Islamic State in West Africa in April. Now it threatens Chad as well as Nigeria.
“Fierce fighting erupts between Chadian army and Boko Haram,” AFP, July 28, 2015:
Heavy fighting pitted the Chadian army on Monday against insurgents from the Nigeria-based Boko Haram group on islands in Lake Chad, security and local sources said.
“Violent clashes” were under way near Baga Sola, one of the main Chadian towns in the lake that straddles Chad, Cameroon, Nigeria and Niger, a Chadian security source told AFP, adding that Chadian forces had earlier “intercepted fleeing Boko Haram elements” around 20 kilometres (12 miles) to the southeast.
A source close to the local authorities said a “major search operation” was under way for Boko Haram militants hiding out on the lake’s islands.
According to the security official, the clashes between militants and Chadian forces erupted Saturday on Midi Koutou island, leaving six Boko Haram fighters dead and 15 wounded. A Chadian soldier was also said to have been killed.
The source said Boko Haram “kidnapped many women and children” as they fled Saturday’s fighting, and added Chadian forces had “around a thousand men positioned to occupy all the islands and neutralise Boko Haram.”
The source close to local authorities said that, following a request from the central government about two weeks ago, an operation was launched “to evacuate the islands’ populations,” and that about 90 percent of residents had been moved to the mainland since….
Westman says
So, do we now call Boko Haram the ISWA(Islamic State in West Africa), West Daesh, WACKO(West African Child Kidnapping Organization), MAKI(Murder And Kidnapping Inc), or what?
“..neutralise Boko Haram.” The Impossible Dream or reality?
11B40 says
Greetings:
I get some of my TV news from the France24 English language broadcasts and they’ye been reporting about the Chadian army’s efforts against Boko Haram. I would say that they appear to me to be putting the Nigerian army to shame in regard to the former’s willingness to join the battle and impose their will. The Chadian army has also performed well elsewhere. I’m pretty sure we will be hearing about its human rights violations if this keeps up.
RonaldB says
” I’m pretty sure we will be hearing about its human rights violations if this keeps up.”
Yes. Charging government forces with human rights violations are part of the strategy of bringing them down in favor of revolutionary, often Islamic, entities. This is a prime strategy against the Israeli government.
Another example is the hypocritical threat pattern against the Syrian government for using mass-murdering, illegal weapons against the mass-murdering rebel forces, especially the pre-ISIS Muslim rebels. We can assume that in that part of the world, almost any fighting force is going to commit atrocities. Perhaps any military in a fight for survival will not be too careful about its victims.
A major contributor to the effect of these charges is national governments ceding their sovereignty to international bodies like the European Court of Human Justice. Fortunately, the US is not a signatory to this unelected, unaccountable body, but who would doubt the willingness of the present administration to put itself under international rule if it could get it past the congress?
mortimer says
I’m so relieved that SO FEW Muslims follow the TINY MINORITY OF EXTREMISTS, otherwise we’d have several Islamic insurgencies in two dozen countries around the world with thousands of jihadists financed by tens of thousands of jihad financiers!
Wait a minute! That’s exactly what’s happening! How did all those middle class, university-trained beheaders, enslavers and child molesters figure out the Religion of Peace is the Religion of Bronze Age Savagery?
Can you explain, Hillary and Barak, just how several MILLION Muslims are misunderstanding the peaceful teachings in the Koran? And do those ‘peaceful teachings’ exist in the Koran? People want to know if you know.
Angemon says
Those African states better get their crap together and make an anti-IS coalition while they still can…
Valentin Elsaesser says
I still can’t figure out why both Chad, Camaroon, and Kenya have the testicles to fight Islamic groups, but not Nigeria when Nigeria is constantly lauded as a country with a growing economy. Are their soldiers not trained right? Are their leaders cowards? Or are their leaders coconspiritors?
Matthieu Baudin says
Dear Valentin, unfortunately Nigeria is split along population demographics between Muslim, Christian and animist communities together with stubborn tribal alliances all of which conspire to prevent any concerted effort against a foreign funded terrorist Islamic outfit like Boko Haram. In the short term it’s important to get behind those countries who want to fight and the resolve of the Chadian forces seems impressive at this stage. It’s well to remember that in the past Chad was a regular recipient of aggression from Gaddafi’s Libya in his megalomaniac designs on Africa and this experience may have benefited the armed forces of Chad by providing battle expertise which could prove invaluable as they face off against Boko Haram.
gravenimage says
Fierce fighting between Chadian army and Islamic State in West Africa
…………………….
Gee—how come we aren’t still hearing about what a small and pathetic thing the Islamic State is, and how the very name is laughably grandiose?
Champ says
LOL! ..true, Graven, I guess Islamic Planet seemed a bit much …
Valentin says
We should just call Muslim world, or Allah land, or even better ‘Mohammeds play land’