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WND
The Nigerian jihadist group Boko Haram, known for its kidnapping of more than 200 schoolgirls, has deepened its connection to the Middle East terror army ISIS by forming an information and materiel-support alliance, according to sources.
A Nigeria staff member for the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, a non-profit foundation promoting democratic institutions, says leaders Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi of ISIS and Abubakar Shakau of Boko Haram “have been sharing military strategy and other information back and forth.”
Kristina Baum says the alliance will empower Boko Haram.
“Boko Haram is hopeful that this will give them more financial support,” she said. “Before, Boko Haram has been getting their money from kidnapping, ransom and extortion from local governments.”
Maha Hamdan, an analyst for Consultancy Africa Intelligence and IntelligenceCommunity.com, confirms the link-up, calling it a dangerous development.
She believes the weakness of the Nigerian army in its war against Boko Haram is “one of the major reasons for the rise of the Boko Haram and ISIS alliance.”
“We are standing at the precipice of the birth of a new radical Islam,” she said.
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Feeding jihad
Rachel Ehrenfeld, director of the American Center for Democracy and the Economic Warfare Institute, says the alliance will feed Boko Haram’s hunger for spreading its vision of Islam as it provides more funding.
“Boko Haram and ISIS share the same basic ideology, and it worked with al-Qaida. And we know that with food – in this instance, success –comes an even bigger appetite,” she said.
She said jihadist groups that started out with a domestic agenda are “joining the larger jihadist agenda to impose Shariah everywhere.”
Reposted with permission