Boko Haram 1 | Page 16

Fact Check 15 #1 #2 #3 #4 “Mohammed Yusuf and the Nigerian Taliban were the immediate ancestors to Boko Haram” in 2003 Mohammed Yusuf and a group of followers “retreated to a remote area of the northeast [Nigeria] called Kanamma. Here they violently clashed with authorities” (Smith, 2014). Though they went for years without being noticed by authorities it appears that they were initially violent even though they were few in number. This statement is true. “Boko Haram didn’t become violent until 2009” followers of Boko Haram used violence as early as 2003, however, it wasn’t until 2009 that Yusuf encouraged his followers to violence during a five day uprising. Yusuf himself was killed in this conflict but the group had already gained traction (Smith, 2014). This statement is mostly true. “Boko Haram is focused exclusively in Nigeria” While Boko Haram has formed links with several terrorist groups the group itself is concentrated in Nigeria and “Boko Haram must be understood in the context of Nigeria’s current conditions” in addition “Disparities between the country’s north, which is mainly Muslim, and its south, which is mostly Christian, are also important in understanding the conflict” (Smith, 2014). Though they are entrenched in the Nigerian political structure, their acts of terror have reached neighboring countries and have caused havoc in the region (AFP, 2015). This statement is true. “20% of Nigeria is controlled by Boko Haram” This figure likely has no basis in fact. In reality they may have controlled that much territory at one time, however their area of influence has been greatly diminished. Security analyst Ryan Cummings said it’s “difficult to assess because there is just no independent reporting from rural, northeastern Nigeria, specifically Borno state where a lot of the violence takes place” (Ezeamalu, 2016). This seems to be a Goldilocks number. A comfortable figure that has been passed around several news outlets such as NPR (Cornish, 2015), and USA Today (Dorell 2015). This statement is mostly true. 16