More details have been emerging over an audio recording that emerged online on Sunday. Security experts say it’s the voice of Boko Haram leader Abubakr Shakau.
In it the militant leader says he’s still alive and in charge of the group. That comes barely a week after Chadian president Idriss Deby claimed Shekau was no longer Boko Haram’s leader.
The message that said Shekahu is alive and well was released on the social media feed of a jihadist monitoring site. According to Site Intelligence the message is authentic. But that cannot be confirmed. And Nigeria’s government has so far not commented on the audio message.
The message is clear, that Abubakr Shakau is still alive and still in charge of Boko Haram. The message denies claims by Chadian President Idriss Deby that Shekau has been replaced.
Some security experts say the voice resembles Shekau’s. But his ongoing absence from Boko Haram videos has fuelled speculation that he might be dead or wounded.
He usually appear in videos. So, this audio recording is different from his normal tactics. That in itself is sure to fuel more speculation on Shekau’s fate.
Shekau’s absence from Boko Haram videos in recent months has fuelled speculation that he might have been killed or wounded.
He has not spoken publicly since he pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) group in an audio recording released on March 7.
The jihadist commander refers to himself in the new recording for the first time as “leader of the west Africa wing” of IS and pays homage to its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, referring to him as the “Caliph of Muslims”.
He taunted Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari, who came to power on May 29 vowing to crush Boko Haram and ordered his military chiefs last week to end the insurgency within three months.
“This ostentatious person, a liar — I mean Buhari, who raised arms to crush us in three months. You Buhari, why didn’t you say in three years?” Shekau demanded.”We will certainly fight you by the grace of Allah until we establish Allah’s law everywhere on Earth.”
Boko Haram has been waging a six-year uprising against the Nigerian state, which has claimed more than 15,000 lives.The jihadists have repeatedly extended their northeastern insurgency into border areas of Cameroon, Chad and Niger.In recent weeks suicide bombers, many of them women, have staged several attacks in Nigeria, Cameroon and Chad.
