For blood thirsty Abubakar Shekau, the days of the terror merchant seems numbered already.
Now his murderous escapade has caught the attention of the World’s super power – United States of America (USA) – and the latter is determined to let him go the way of Osama bin Laden of the Al-Qaeda notoriety.
The American government, through its Department of State, has offered a juicy $7million reward (about N2.52 billion) for information that can lead to the arrest of Abubakar Shekau, the Boko Haram leader menacing Nigeria and the neighbouring countries.
The bounty on Shekau ranks as the biggest placed on all the terrorists declared wanted by the United States government.
“Every government and every citizen has a stake in bringing terrorists to justice and in preventing acts of terrorism,” the US State Department said.
The offer was made on the French version of the official Twitter account of the US State Department Rewards for Justice Program.
The notice provides the contact details for anyone who is interested in collecting the bounty as #Whatsapp: +1 202 975 9195 and #Telegram: @RFJ_Francais_bot.
It was not clear why the Department of State chose to declare Shekau wanted in the French version of its Twitter accounts.
In the English version of the Twitter account, which was opened 27 February, the Reward for Justice Program also offered $5million reward for information on 3 ISIS leaders and another $6m on another terror group AQAP leaders.
“Up to $5 million for information on ISIS key leaders Hajji ‘Abdallah, Hajji Hamid and Hajji Taysir. Justice never sleeps, and never stops looking for ISIS terrorists. If you have information ISIS, please submit a tip. 100% confidential. http://rewardsforjustice.net #RFJ,” the tweet stated.
US case against Shekau
Abubakar Shekau is the leader of Jama’atu Ahl
as-Sunnah il-Da’awati wal-Jihad, more commonly known as Boko Haram.
Boko Haram, which means “Western education is forbidden,” is a Nigeria-based terrorist organization that seeks to overthrow the current Nigerian government and replace it with a regime based on Islamic law.
The group has existed in various forms since the late 1990s. There are reported communications, training, and weapons links between Boko Haram, al-Qaida in the Lands of the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), al-Shabaab, and al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, which may strengthen Boko Haram’s capacity to conduct terrorist attacks.
Shekau was previously the group’s second-in-command. In July 2010, Shekau publicly claimed leadership of Boko Haram and threatened to attack Western interests in Nigeria.
Later that month, Shekau issued a second statement expressing solidarity with al-Qaeda and threatening the United States. Under Shekau’s leadership, Boko Haram’s operational capabilities have grown.
The group set off its first vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (IED) in June 2011, and has increasingly utilized IEDs in attacks against soft targets. Boko Haram’s August 26, 2011 vehicle-bomb attack on the United Nations headquarters in Abuja, Nigeria, marked the group’s first lethal operation against Western interests.
At least 23 people were killed, and 80 more were injured, in the attack. A purported Boko Haram spokesman claimed responsibility for the attack and promised future targeting of U.S and Nigerian government interests.
On May 1, 2012, less than one week after the group bombed a Nigerian newspaper building in Abuja, Boko Haram issued a video statement threatening more attacks on local and international news outlets, including the Voice of America and Sahara Reporters, a New York-based media service.
Under Shekau’s leadership Boko Haram has continually targeted young children. On April 14, 2014, Boko Haram kidnapped close to 300 girls from their school in northern Nigeria. In a video message released three weeks later, Shekau claimed responsibility for the kidnappings, calling the girls slaves and threatening to sell them in the market.
On June 21, 2012, the U.S Department of State described Shekau a Specially Designated Global Terrorist under Executive Order 13224.
Meanwhile, the new leader of Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) Lawan Abubakar, also called Ba Lawan, has executed five Shura council members (the supreme leadership council of the terrorist group) including the erstwhile leader of the group Abu Abdullahi Umar Al Barnawi aka Ba Idrisa, authoritative sources familiar with developments around the group said Sunday in Diffa and Maiduguri.
The execution has been described as “by far the most bloody and extensive move in the history of the group to behead its leadership crop in one fell swoop.”
The execution is seen as the new leader’s way of consolidating his power and authority over the terrorist organisation.
After an early February coup that led to the overthrow of Al-Barnawi, the new leadership detained him together with four members of the Shura who constituted his kitchen cabinet, sources reportedly said.
The precise date of the execution is still in contention, but multiple sources familiar with the development said the killing of Ba Idrisa, along with Mohammad Bashir, Mustapha Jere, Ali Abdullahi, and the notorious Baba Mayinta, believed to be the power behind the throne under the Idrisa dispensation, “definitely triggered the mutiny of Wednesday 26th February into Thursday, 27th February by Ba Idrisa loyalists.
“It is unclear whether the scheme was to create a smokescreen in a process of working to an answer by swiftly ordering their summary execution but a rank of fighting troops loyal to the executed leaders instigated a rebellion against the new leaders, invading the secluded island that serves as one of their main sanctuaries, hoping to free the five men and plot their escape,” our usually multiple sources embedded in the conflicts state, said, claiming there was originally no intention to execute the leaders.
However, in the gun battle that ensued before dawn on Thursday, February 27, some high-profile leaders became collateral casualties, with Mustapha Krimima, the notable power-behind-the-throne and kingmaker in ISWAP escaping fatality by the whiskers and Abu Musab, a former leader, dethroned in March 2019 and son of late Mohammed Yusuf, founder of Boko Haram, believed to have been shot.
There is however no confirmation yet whether he survived or was killed.
Traditionally, such power consolidation scheme in the rank of the insurgency often heralds a short to medium period of unprecedented violence when the new leadership tries to define its identity, but inside sources and watchers of the recent ISWAP evolution are saying, in the current situation, a far-reaching purge, with its potential for substantial damage to the internal cohesion within the group as well as possible prolonged leadership instability should be expected.