But “Abubakar Shekau” is believed to be an operational brand title adopted by the sect for its leader, since his emergence and adoption of extremism in propagating jihad, following the demise of the original founder of Boko Haram, Muhammed Yusuf.
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This is not the first time the army is claiming to have killed Abubakar Shekau.
Amnesty International have constantly accused the Nigerian military of excessive force and extra-judicial killings of suspected Boko Haram insurgents, Shiite Muslims and pro-Biafra protestors.
Nigeria’s air force said it had killed a number of senior Boko Haram fighters and possibly their overall leader, as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrived for talks on tackling the militants.
Several media reported that Boko Haram commanders confirmed dead include Abubakar Mubi, Malam Nuhu and Malam Hamman, among others.
President Buhari believes that the wise counsels and support of the royal father on issues of good governance, girl-child education, infant and child mortality, and agriculture has greatly enriched his administration’s efforts to improve the livelihood of Nigerians. Dozens of the kidnapped girls escaped, but 218 remain missing.
The SecState further congratulated the military on its recent successes in the fight against Boko Haram, as it has reclaimed swathes of territory from the extremist group, freeing thousands of hostages.
Shekau started the uprising in 2009 that has killed 20,000 people, driven more than 2.2 million from their homes, spread across Nigeria’s borders and, in Kerry’s words, “flung some seven million Nigerians into hunger, thirst, and desperate need”. Officials say they have only just confirmed the details.
Boko Haram appears to be fractured by a leadership struggle after the Islamic State group recently announced it had a new leader.
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However, Usman was silent on whether or not the affected Boko Haram leaders were among those on the 100 most wanted list of the group released by the military.
