An Australian hostage negotiator, Dr. Stephen Davis, has warned that Boko Haram may establish links with two vicious terror groups- Al Shabaab and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria- if not effectively checked now by the Nigerian government.
Davis had visited Nigeria to negotiate the release of the over 200 schoolgirls abducted since April by Boko Haram insurgents. In an interview posted on Wednesday August 27 by Radio Australia, Davis said that the best ways to stop Boko Haram insurgency were to block its sources of funding and tracking down its sponsors.
He identified banks and some Nigerian politicians as the major providers of funds to the insurgents. He also argued that should Jonathan try to order their arrest, it would be misconstrued as a political attempt to rig the 2015 elections…
“That
makes it easier in some ways as they can be arrested, but of course the
onus of proof is high and many are in opposition, so if the President
moves against them, he would be accused of trying to rig the elections
due early next year. So, I think this (insurgency) will run through to
the election unabated. These politicians think that if they win power
they can turn these terrorists off, but this has mutated.
It’s
no longer a case of Muslims purifying by killing off Christians. They
are just killing indiscriminately, beheading, disembowelling people –
men, women and children and whole villages.”
According
to the negotiator, Boko Haram is growing out of the control of the
politicians sponsoring it. He warned that, as it is the trend with
terrorist groups in Somalia, South Sudan and Egypt, the Boko Haram
insurgents might soon link up with the ISIS and Al Shabaab.
“I
would say it’s almost beyond the control of the political sponsors now.
Terror groups are linking up in Somalia, southern Sudan, Egypt and we
have fairly strong evidence they are talking with ISIS members. They
will link up with ISIS and Al Shabaab and I think that what we are
seeing in that region is the new homeland of radical Islam in the
world.”
He however blamed the aborted rescue of the schoolgirls on sabotage.
“I
made a few telephone calls to the Boko Haram commanders and they
confirmed they were in possession of the girls. They told me they would
be prepared to release some as a goodwill gesture towards a peace deal
with the government, so I went to Nigeria on the basis of being able to
secure their release.
girls
were there, 60 girls. There were 20 vehicles with girls. We travelled
for four-and-a-half hours to reach them, but 15 minutes before we
arrived, they were kidnapped again by another group who wanted to cash
in on a reward.
The
police had offered a reward of several million naira just 24 hours
before we went to pick them up. I understand, from the Boko Haram
commanders I spoke to, the girls eventually ended up back with them. I
don’t know what happened to the group that took them but I suspect it
wasn’t good.”
Davis
previously worked as a negotiator for Nigerian government under
ex-Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Shehu Yar’Adua administrations
during the Niger-Delta militants uprising in the South-South. He is
based in Perth and recently returned from a four-month sojourn with rare
footage of the intense fighting in the North-East.
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