CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the Study

Violence has shaped human societies throughout history, from raids and tribal wars to rebellions against established rulers. Insurgency is one of its most persistent forms. It is the strategy of groups that are too weak to seize power by conventional means and therefore rely on prolonged, asymmetric violence, political mobilisation and the support or silence of the local population. Boot (2013) argues that insurgents have usually lost against stronger states, but that their chances of success have improved since 1945 because public opinion, the media and international law now weigh heavily on the will of states to sustain long counterinsurgency campaigns. Regular armies today therefore often face irregular fighters who operate among civilians and fight as much for the narrative as for territory.

Nigeria has long experienced violence rooted in ethnic, religious and political divisions. The Maitatsine unrest in Kano in 1980, which left hundreds dead, is one example, and militant groups have repeatedly challenged the state since independence (Etor & Asekhauno, 2024). Yet of all these groups, none has developed into a terrorist organisation on the scale of Boko Haram, which has been described as the most violent in its methods and the most difficult to explain in its aims (Etor & Asekhauno, 2024).

Boko Haram, whose name is commonly translated as 'Western education is prohibited', began as a radical Islamist sect in the north-east that called for the enforcement of sharia, including among non-Muslims (Al Jazeera, 2009). The turning point came in July 2009, when clashes between the sect and security forces spread across four northern states and left hundreds dead. Its leader, Mohammed Yusuf, was killed in police custody, an act that Human Rights Watch condemned as an extrajudicial killing (Al Jazeera, 2009). Since then, the north-east has experienced a sustained insurgency (Etor & Asekhauno, 2024). The group's reach extended beyond the north-east on 26 August 2011, when a suicide bomber drove a vehicle into United Nations House in Abuja, killing 23 people, 11 of them UN staff (United Nations, n.d.). In March 2015, it pledged allegiance to the Islamic State and began to call itself the Islamic State's West Africa Province (ISWAP), although it is still widely called Boko Haram (Etor & Asekhauno, 2024).

The human cost has been very large. Studies report that the insurgency has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced more than two million (Etor & Asekhauno, 2024). The threat has not receded. The Global Terrorism Index 2026 ranked Nigeria fourth in the world for the impact of terrorism in 2025, up two places, and recorded a 46% rise in terrorism deaths to 750, the highest level since 2020. ISWAP was again the country's deadliest terrorist group, and ISWAP and Boko Haram together accounted for about 80% of terrorism deaths (Institute for Economics & Peace, 2026).

Explanations for the rise of Boko Haram differ. Etor and Asekhauno (2024) point to a convergence of religious indoctrination, poverty and long-standing economic disparities, weak governance, patronage politics among elites, porous borders and an under-equipped security system. Olaniyan and Asuelime (2014, as cited in Etor & Asekhauno, 2024) show that the insurgency has also been read through ethno-religious and political lenses, with some commentators interpreting it as part of a struggle over political power. These competing readings matter because they imply different remedies, from military force to development and political reform. This study examines the causes of the Boko Haram insurgency, its socio-economic consequences and the response of the Nigerian state from 2009 to 2025.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

There is no agreed definition of terrorism, and scholars continue to debate whether it should include state actors, whether it must target civilians and whether a political purpose is essential (Center for Research on Extremism, n.d.). A widely cited definition describes terrorism as the deliberate creation and exploitation of fear through violence or the threat of violence in the pursuit of political change (Hoffman, 2017). For this study, terrorism is understood as deliberate violence by non-state extremist actors against civilians and other vulnerable targets, intended to spread fear and advance a political, religious or ideological agenda. State terrorism is outside its scope.

To place Boko Haram properly, it helps to distinguish terrorism from extremism and from armed struggle for freedom. Extremism is a belief: an intolerant, radical commitment to a political or religious position that rejects all others. It becomes terrorism when violence is used to impose that belief and to spread fear. Movements that claim to fight for a just cause, such as national liberation, are likewise classified as terrorist when they use methods that deliberately target civilians.

The central problem is why a sect that began as a religious movement became one of the world's deadliest terrorist organisations. Several explanations compete. Deprivation and strain theories suggest that poverty, inequality and economic imbalance pushed marginalised young people toward violence, and the literature does record that Boko Haram drew much of its local support from unemployed and impoverished youths in the north (Etor & Asekhauno, 2024). A second view stresses ideology, in particular a radical Islamist worldview that rejects Western education and the secular state. A third treats the movement as political, a vehicle shaped by the interests of elites; some Nigerians have argued that northern political elites sponsored or tolerated the group to weaken the government of President Goodluck Jonathan (Etor & Asekhauno, 2024). A fourth view stresses state conduct, and in particular the extrajudicial killing of Yusuf and the heavy-handed response of security forces in 2009, which many see as a catalyst for radicalisation (Al Jazeera, 2009). Each explanation has support and limits, and none has been shown to account for the whole.

This study therefore examines how these factors relate to one another in explaining the transformation of Boko Haram, and what the answer implies for Nigeria's national security policy.

1.3 Objectives of the Study

The main objective is to examine the root causes of the Boko Haram insurgency and its socio-economic implications. The specific objectives are to:

1. Investigate terrorism as a challenge to Nigeria's national security, using Boko Haram as a case study.
2. Examine the socio-economic implications of the insurgency, especially the roles of poverty and injustice that political leaders and analysts cite as causes.
3. Analyse the ideology that drives the Boko Haram insurgency.
4. Make recommendations on possible solutions to the Boko Haram insurgency.

1.4 Research Questions

The study is guided by one central question: why did Boko Haram, which began as a religious sect, become a terrorist organisation? It is supported by the following questions:

1. What challenges does terrorism pose to Nigeria's national security, with reference to Boko Haram?
2. Did poverty contribute to the Boko Haram insurgency?
3. Did injustice and the denial of civil liberties contribute to the Boko Haram crisis?
4. What influence do radical Islamist ideologies have on the Boko Haram insurgency?

1.5 Research Hypotheses

The following null hypotheses guide the analysis:

H01: Poverty and inequality did not significantly contribute to the transformation of Boko Haram into a terrorist organisation.

H02: Injustice and the denial of civil liberties did not significantly contribute to the transformation of Boko Haram into a terrorist organisation.

H03: Radical Islamist ideology did not significantly drive the Boko Haram insurgency.

These propositions will be examined systematically to understand the factors behind the sect's development into an insurgent force.

1.6 Significance of the Study

Nigeria is a secular state and has been affected severely by the activities of Boko Haram, which have strained relations between communities and threatened national cohesion. By explaining why a religious sect became a terrorist group, the study will give policymakers, security agencies and scholars a clearer basis for judging which responses address causes and which address only symptoms. It will also add to the literature on terrorism and national security in Nigeria at a time when the country is again ranked among the most terrorism-affected in the world (Institute for Economics & Peace, 2026).

1.7 Scope of the Study

Violence is a recurring feature of human society, arising from the competing interests of individuals and groups, and the state exists in part to regulate it. In Africa, recurrent conflict has become a major obstacle to development. This study covers the causes of the Boko Haram insurgency and the response of the Nigerian federal government from 2009, when the sect's activities attracted national and global attention, to 2025, the most recent year for which comprehensive terrorism data are available. Emphasis is placed on the response of the Nigerian state within this period.

1.8 Definition of Terms

Terrorism: Deliberate violence by non-state actors against civilians and other vulnerable targets, intended to create fear and advance political, religious or ideological aims (Hoffman, 2017).

Insurgency: A prolonged campaign of armed violence and political mobilisation by a group seeking to overthrow a government or to secure goals such as separation or policy change.

National security: The protection of a state's people, territory, institutions and way of life against threats that undermine its stability and survival.

Boko Haram: The Islamist sect, founded in north-east Nigeria, that became a violent insurgent group and is also known by its later name, the Islamic State's West Africa Province (ISWAP), for its main faction.

References

Al Jazeera. (2009, July 31). Islamist leader killed in Nigeria. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2009/7/31/islamist-leader-killed-in-nigeria

Boot, M. (2013). Invisible armies: An epic history of guerrilla warfare from ancient times to the present. Liveright.

Center for Research on Extremism. (n.d.). What is terrorism? University of Oslo. https://www.sv.uio.no/c-rex/english/resources/key-consepts-and-questions/what-is-terrorism.html

Etor, C., & Asekhauno, A. A. (2024). Assessing the impact of Boko Haram's terrorist activities in the North East region of Nigeria. Journal of Contemporary International Relations and Diplomacy, 5(1), 59–73. https://doi.org/10.53982/jcird.2024.0501.04-j

Hoffman, B. (2017). Inside terrorism (3rd ed.). Columbia University Press.

Institute for Economics & Peace. (2026). Global terrorism index 2026. https://www.economicsandpeace.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Global-Terrorism-Index-2026-Report.pdf

Olaniyan, A., & Asuelime, L. (2014). Boko Haram insurgency and the widening of cleavages in Nigeria. African Security, 7(2), 91–109. https://doi.org/10.1080/19392206.2014.909246

United Nations. (n.d.). Remember the fallen: Abuja, 26 August 2011. https://www.un.org/en/memorial/nigeria2011.shtml