Until few days ago when I heard that the Islamic sect- Bokom Haram has chosen the Nigerian Universities as their next targets, I have never given them any attention despite their many bombings. This is not because I’m heartless enough not to be moved by the deaths of the many Nigerians who died in the process but this is just a situation beyond my control as a mere citizen like every other person.
However, I think the threat on University is a confirmation of the fact that Boko is still Haram- if you know what I mean. Boko means Western way (education) and Haram means (forbidden) so, do the simple mathematics Boko Haram will simply mean to forbid the western ways. Interesting then! But my question is how haram (forbidden) is Boko (western ways). If Boko is really Haram why do they keep using western methods in their destructive mission- they use bomb, guns; they have websites, make conversations on online platforms and even use mobile phones, haba! Boko haram!
Who is deceiving who? All this bombing and killing couldn’t have just been Boko Haram alone- there must be a political undertone. This has been the same trend in every terrorism attack across the globe and Nigeria is not an exception. According to one tally, there have been 17,710 terrorist incidents carried out in the name of Islam since Sept. 11, 2001, claiming over 100,000 lives. Prime Minister Stephen Harper, in a recent CBC interview, said radical Islamist militants are the biggest threat. "There are a number of threats on a number of levels, but if you are talking about terrorism, it is Islamicism," he said.
While it would be grossly unfair for us, or anyone, to make Islam the culprit, the truth of Harper's statement is backed up by U.S. Department of Justice figures, which show that radical Islamists are disproportionately involved in terror-related crimes. Yet radical Islamists are not alone in perpetrating acts of evil. Anders Breivik, the confessed perpetrator of the July attacks in Norway that resulted in eight deaths in Oslo and the mass shooting of 69 teenagers at a youth camp, professed an antifeminist, white nationalist, Islamaphobic, anti-multicultural agenda to preserve a Christian Europe.
In terms of body count, nearly 8,000 Muslim men and boys were killed in the Srebrenica massacre in 1995, which is more than double the number of deaths in 9/11. Radical Islamists, in fact, are indiscriminate, willingly sacrificing other Muslims for a cause and hijacking a religion in the process.
The same in Nigeria- radical Islamists are not alone in perpetrating acts of evil, Boko haram has just been so unfortunate to fall as the current victim of circumstances in the ongoing bomb attacks. When the trouble in Niger-Delta started and people started kidnapping, militancy became a house-hold name, now, it is Boko Haram and it is fast becoming a household name-so, for every bomb attack now there is a registered name-Boko Haram but believe me if a new terrorism group start tomorrow all attacks will be registered under their name.
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