Boko Haram released a new video on Tuesday that allegedly shows fighters shooting wounded Nigerian soldiers in the head and beheading a man in civilian clothes as well as charred parts claimed to be the remnants of a downed Nigerian jet fighter.
The video, the first released since the group pledged allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group, has no sign of longtime leader Abubakar Shekau, previously a mainstay of the group’s videos.
In the video, a member of the group say Boko Haram still holds several northeastern towns and has thousands of fighters – claims impossible to substantiate. The video gloats over alleged disunity in the multinational force that in March announced it had driven Boko Haram from all towns and villages.
Nigerian neighbours Chad and Niger have said the fight against Boko Haram would be long over if they had better cooperation from Nigeria.
President Muhammadu Buhari will be travelling to Chad and Niger today on his first official trip outside Nigeria, spokesman Garba Shehu said. Boko Haram’s violent campaign has killed about 13,000 people since 2009 and driven 1.5 million from their homes.
