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Boko Haram and the Ambivalence of International Legal Response

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Boko Haram and International Law

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Abstract

There is a tendency to describe Boko Haram as a domestic terrorist group. While this may have been true in the origin and early phase of its evolution and whereas its seat of power is located in the northeast of Nigeria, it is beyond doubt now that Boko Haram is an international terrorist group. In this chapter, I argue that it is no longer relevant to maintain the ‘domestic terrorism’ and ‘international terrorism dichotomy’ with reference to Boko Haram. I argue that Boko Haram possesses the international characteristics and meets the criteria to qualify as an international terrorist group, and maintaining such distinction does not contribute to our understanding and legal response to Boko Haram as a terrorist group. This chapter concludes by highlighting the impending ‘apocalypse’ objective of global jihadists and proposes areas for future research to deepen our understanding and response to the growing threat of terrorism in Africa in general and in West Africa in particular.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    See Grassiani and Ben-Ari (2011), p. 7.

  2. 2.

    See Laccino (28 April 2015).

  3. 3.

    See Cassese (2006), p. 749 (emphasis mine).

  4. 4.

    See Flory (1997), p. 31.

  5. 5.

    See Flory (1997), p. 31; Cassese (2006), p. 749.

  6. 6.

    See the contribution of Akinola Akintayo in this volume.

  7. 7.

    See the chapter by Akintayo in this volume.

  8. 8.

    See the chapter by Adigun in this volume.

  9. 9.

    See generally, Connell (Summer 2012), pp. 87–93.

  10. 10.

    See Thomson (2012), p. 51.

  11. 11.

    See Adibe (2017), pp. 135–136.

  12. 12.

    For a discussion of why terrorist often prefer to act in violation of the jus in bello, see French (2003), pp. 32–34.

  13. 13.

    For an explanation of this distinction, see Haines (2012), p. 27.

  14. 14.

    See Onuoha and George (2016), pp. 208–214.

  15. 15.

    Some argue that the adoption of Sharia law in some northern states contributed to the spread of radicalisation of youths in Northern Nigeria and by extension the rise of Boko Haram.

  16. 16.

    See Akanji (2007), p. 60.

  17. 17.

    See the contribution by Romola Adeola in this volume.

  18. 18.

    See Amaliya and Nwankpa (2014), p. 81. Senator Ndume was once arrested and charged with financing the group; recently, a local council boss was also arrested for links with the group. Several security personnel within the armed forces and the police, sometimes at very senior levels have been implicated for either being members, funders, or supporters or sympathisers of the group.

  19. 19.

    See Onuoha and George (2016), p. 209.

  20. 20.

    Onuoha and George (2016), p. 210.

  21. 21.

    See Grassiani and Ben-Ari (2011), p. 7.

  22. 22.

    See Onuoha and George (2016), p. 209.

  23. 23.

    See Onuoha and George (2016), p. 209.

  24. 24.

    Onuoha and George (2016), p. 209.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Jurisprudence, School of Law, University of Venda, Thohoyandou, South Africa

    John-Mark Iyi

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Law, University of Venda, Thohoyandou, South Africa

    John-Mark Iyi

  2. Faculty of Law, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Hennie Strydom

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Iyi, JM. (2018). Boko Haram and the Ambivalence of International Legal Response. In: Iyi, JM., Strydom, H. (eds) Boko Haram and International Law. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-74957-0_18

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-74957-0_18

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