In February 2016, two female suicide bombers from the terrorist group Boko Haram killed
58 people at a camp in northern Nigeria.
The victims were among the more than 50,000 people seeking refuge from the terrorist organization,
which was recently named the deadliest in the world by the Global Terrorism Index.
On average, Boko Haram’s attacks are twice as deadly as the Islamic State’s; however,
they’ve only received about a fifth of the media coverage, and considerably less western
military intervention.
So why has so much been done to stop ISIS but not Boko Haram?
Boko Haram’s name loosely translates to "Western education is forbidden".
In 2002, the group gained popularity by exploiting public frustration with Nigeria’s corrupt
and increasingly Westernizing government.
Boko Haram attacks were mostly small and unreported until 2009, when a violent uprising shifted
the group into jihadist extremism.
The terrorist organization is often compared to ISIS, as both are inspired by Wahhabism,
an ultraconservative, extremist branch of Sunni Islam.
In fact, Boko Haram pledged allegiance to ISIS in March 2015, as a way to further expand
and legitimize their terror operation.
Attacks by Boko Haram are generally more deadly than those by ISIS, as the group is known
to target crowded areas like schools or markets.
In fact, in 2014, Boko Haram carried out about half as many attacks as ISIS, but killed roughly
600 more people in total.
That same year, the group kidnapped nearly 300 Nigerian school girls, sparking a global
campaign to save them.
But overall, world leaders have united to fight ISIS.
In just 10 months, the US spent more than $2.74 billion dollars on the war against ISIS.
That’s compared to roughly $50 million dollars and a few dozen armored vehicles to fight
Boko Haram overall.
The Islamic State also trumps Boko Haram in terms of global media coverage.
When ISIS and Boko Haram each committed an act of mass terrorism in early January 2015,
according to a Washington Post analysis, America’s news outlets published more than 3,200 articles
mentioning ISIS, but only about 500 mentioning Boko Haram.
Yet, Boko Haram killed as many as 2000 people in their attack, compared to 17 deaths as
a result of ISIS during this same time period
All things considered, our question remains: why isn’t there more military and media
attention focused on Boko Haram?
Well, it sounds overly simple, but Western media is predominantly concerned with Western
issues.
ISIS has threatened Europe and the US, and is linked to attacks in 20 countries outside
Iraq and Syria.
Boko Haram, on the other hand, is localized to West Africa where there’s considerably
less western involvement.
And while the US has an enduring military and economic stake in Iraq and Syria, the
same just can’t be said for Nigeria.
Boko Haram shocked the world when it kidnapped over 300 young girls from a Nigerian school.
To learn more about that attack and more about the group’s deadly mission, watch the video
at the top.
To learn more about why Boko Haram pledged its allegiance to ISIS, check out the video
at the bottom.
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