However, in the new video clip released on Sunday, Shekau said that with God, he was fully prepared against the Nigerian armed forces.
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Man who claims to be Abubakar Shekau denies assertions by the Nigerian army that he had been seriously wounded.
Responding to the video via a statement by Sani Usman, its spokesman, the army said Shekau had derailed and no longer believes and practises the Islam he professes to follow.
Pressure has been mounting on the Nigerian government to act swiftly in the search for the school girls who were abducted in 2014 after a raid of their school dormitories by Boko Haram in Chibok while they were sleeping at night.
The Nigeran army has previously said that Boko Haram videos suggesting Shekau is still alive are “just a facade.”
Speaking in Hausa, Arabic and English and in dialects spoken in northeast Nigeria he appeared to be in good physical health.
Still image of Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau taken from an undated video released by Nigerian Islamist rebel group Boko Haram. Last month’s announcement by the air force came days after Islamic State, to whom Boko Haram pledged allegiance a year ago, announced the appointment of a new leader of the West African group in an apparent rejection of Shekau.
The attack that brought Boko Haram worldwide notoriety was when Shekau’s forces captured approximately 300 girls – between the ages of 16 and 18 – from a boarding school in the town of Chibok in Borno state in April 2014. He has publicly criticized his former mentor for killing too many civilians, including Muslims.
“The challenge is in getting credible and bona fide leadership of Boko Haram to discuss with”, said Buhari.
Security analysts have said the split could indicate a shift in focus by the pro-Barnawi faction away from targeting crowded marketplaces and mosques to hitting military and government targets. A multi-national joint task force – comprising troops from Nigeria and neighboring Niger, Cameroon, Chad and Benin – is also fighting the militants.
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The Nigerian military has capitalized on the recent fractures within the formerly unified Boko Haram, taking back swaths of territory from the terrorist-held lands since a campaign launched in February of 2014.
