By Scott Morgan
Recently a Press Event
was held at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. by CANAN (Christian
Association of Nigerian-Americans.) There was a specific reason for the timing
of this event. It is hoped that the United States will take similar action to
what has recently been taken by Great Britain regarding the Terrorist Group
Boko Haram[1]. In fact support
for Boko Haram is now a Criminal Offence in the United Kingdom.[2] So why is there
such a huge disconnect between London and Washington in this matter?
At the Presser the Freedom of Religion
advocacy group Jubilee Campaign presented a fact sheet compiling data from the
State Department and START that was released during the calendar year of 2012.
Some of the findings include:
Nigeria had
the 4th number of Suicide Attacks committed around the world.
Of the 57
attacks against Telecommunication sites around the word 38 were targeted by
Boko Haram
One Third of
the Religious Institutions targeted were in Nigeria. 60% of the 325 attacks on
Educational sites were in Nigeria and Pakistan
There were
more attacks on religious institutions in Nigeria than there were on Diplomatic
Outposts Worldwide. On average 2.56 people were killed in each attack so far
this year
The average
lethality of terrorist attacks in Nigeria (2.54 deaths) is more than 50 percent
higher than the global average.(1.64 deaths per attack)
These numbers
are staggering. It shows that the group has no problem killing Christians who
they feel are interlopers and Muslims that they feel are not devout enough.
However they point to the situation currently on the ground in the Northern
States which are currently operating under Sharia Law. These states also mark
borders with neighboring states such as Niger, Chad and Cameroon. One of the
questions that is causing an issue whether or not Boko Haram meets the criteria
of a FTO (Foreign Terrorist Organization)