A screengrab taken on May 12, 2014, from a video of Nigerian Islamist extremist group Boko Haram obtained by AFP shows girls, wearing the full-length hijab and praying in an undisclosed rural location
Maiduguri:
Nigeria needs foreign help to defeat Boko Haram, a senior intelligence source told AFP on Friday, as the country's top Muslim leader broke his silence to demand action to defeat the militants.
The security source, who agreed to an interview on condition of anonymity, said the kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls had laid bare Nigeria's inability to end the increasingly bloody uprising.
"The Chibok kidnap has exposed our nakedness. It has exposed how porous we are," he said in the state capital of northeastern Borno state, Maiduguri.
"It has clearly shown that we don't have the wherewithal to deal with this insurgency that has raged on for five years now.
"We have no option but to eat humble pie and accept whatever foreign assistance we can get to end this violence."
The comments follow sharp criticism in Nigeria and abroad of the government's initial response to the crisis, which has since led to international teams being sent to help in the rescue effort.
The wider issue of the military's use of conventional tactics against an enemy fighting a guerrilla war has also been called into question.
Unmanned US drones and manned surveillance planes have now been sent to scour the harsh terrain in northeast Nigeria and neighbouring Chad from the skies.
Britain, France and Israel have also sent specialist teams to Nigeria.
Al-Qaeda links
Ratcheting up global pressure further, the United Nations Security Council on Thursday formally proscribed Boko Haram as an Al-Qaeda-linked terrorist organisation.
An arms embargo and assets freeze is designed to cut off foreign funding and support from groups such as Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM).
US Ambassador Samantha Power called the sanctions "an important step" to support Nigeria in defeating "Boko Haram and hold its murderous leadership accountable for atrocities".
But Jacob Zenn, from the Jamestown Foundation think-tank, said Boko Haram largely operated "beyond the formal parameters where an arms embargo or asset freeze would affect the group".
Boko Haram funds its activities from bank robberies, extortion and kidnappings for ransom and is strongly suspected of having support from sections of the Nigerian military and state.
Zenn said, however, that the move was an indication that world powers were now addressing the Boko Haram threat.
"It could be a sign that the international community, in particular France, which hosted the summit that gave a boost to establishing these sanctions, will now take on Boko Haram with the same level of seriousness, if not more, than it took on AQIM when it controlled northern Mali in 2012-13," he told AFP by email.
Longer-term involvement
Boko Haram are suspected of carrying out Nigeria's deadliest bombing on Tuesday in the central city of Jos, which saw two car bombs explode within 20 minutes of each other, killing at least 118.
On April 14, 75 people were killed in a car bomb attack in a suburb of Abuja while 19 died in a copy-cat attack on the same location on May 1.
Analysts say the upsurge in violence outside Boko Haram's northeast heartland is a show of strength both to the Nigerian government and now to the international community.
The security source suggested foreign intervention could go beyond the current hostage crisis, which is now in its sixth week.
Nigeria's military had been too heavy-handed in dealing with the extremists, with widespread claims of atrocities against civilians, that had alienated local communities in the northeast, he said.
"Our priority will have to be getting the girls safely out of the hands of Boko Haram and then go after them with the foreign assistance at our disposal," he said.
'Guns to their heads'
Meanwhile, the leader of Nigeria's Muslims announced plans to hold a national day of prayer in the capital, Abuja, as part of the effort to crackdown on the insurgents.
The Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammad Sa'ad Abubakar III, has invited prominent Muslim leaders to the National Mosque on Sunday to offer "prayers for peace and security".
The event aims to help the country in "overcoming the current security challenges facing the country", a statement printed in several national newspapers said.
The call follows an open letter to the Sultan written by prominent Nigerian rights activist and author Shehu Sani, who has been part of several past effort to end the uprising through dialogue.
Sani said Nigeria's top cleric should do more to help secure the girls' release and northern imams in general "should move beyond prayers and independently move further to reach out to the insurgents".
"The Chibok girls have guns on their heads and chains on their hands and we have a dangling sword of posterity hanging over our heads," he wrote in an open letter published this week.
The security source also criticised Muslim leaders for a lack of action, saying the Sultan should have mobilised them sooner to send "a clear message to Boko Haram that they don't represent Muslim interests".
The security source, who agreed to an interview on condition of anonymity, said the kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls had laid bare Nigeria's inability to end the increasingly bloody uprising.
"The Chibok kidnap has exposed our nakedness. It has exposed how porous we are," he said in the state capital of northeastern Borno state, Maiduguri.
"It has clearly shown that we don't have the wherewithal to deal with this insurgency that has raged on for five years now.
"We have no option but to eat humble pie and accept whatever foreign assistance we can get to end this violence."
The comments follow sharp criticism in Nigeria and abroad of the government's initial response to the crisis, which has since led to international teams being sent to help in the rescue effort.
The wider issue of the military's use of conventional tactics against an enemy fighting a guerrilla war has also been called into question.
Unmanned US drones and manned surveillance planes have now been sent to scour the harsh terrain in northeast Nigeria and neighbouring Chad from the skies.
Britain, France and Israel have also sent specialist teams to Nigeria.
Al-Qaeda links
Ratcheting up global pressure further, the United Nations Security Council on Thursday formally proscribed Boko Haram as an Al-Qaeda-linked terrorist organisation.
An arms embargo and assets freeze is designed to cut off foreign funding and support from groups such as Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM).
US Ambassador Samantha Power called the sanctions "an important step" to support Nigeria in defeating "Boko Haram and hold its murderous leadership accountable for atrocities".
But Jacob Zenn, from the Jamestown Foundation think-tank, said Boko Haram largely operated "beyond the formal parameters where an arms embargo or asset freeze would affect the group".
Boko Haram funds its activities from bank robberies, extortion and kidnappings for ransom and is strongly suspected of having support from sections of the Nigerian military and state.
Zenn said, however, that the move was an indication that world powers were now addressing the Boko Haram threat.
"It could be a sign that the international community, in particular France, which hosted the summit that gave a boost to establishing these sanctions, will now take on Boko Haram with the same level of seriousness, if not more, than it took on AQIM when it controlled northern Mali in 2012-13," he told AFP by email.
Longer-term involvement
Boko Haram are suspected of carrying out Nigeria's deadliest bombing on Tuesday in the central city of Jos, which saw two car bombs explode within 20 minutes of each other, killing at least 118.
On April 14, 75 people were killed in a car bomb attack in a suburb of Abuja while 19 died in a copy-cat attack on the same location on May 1.
Analysts say the upsurge in violence outside Boko Haram's northeast heartland is a show of strength both to the Nigerian government and now to the international community.
The security source suggested foreign intervention could go beyond the current hostage crisis, which is now in its sixth week.
Nigeria's military had been too heavy-handed in dealing with the extremists, with widespread claims of atrocities against civilians, that had alienated local communities in the northeast, he said.
"Our priority will have to be getting the girls safely out of the hands of Boko Haram and then go after them with the foreign assistance at our disposal," he said.
'Guns to their heads'
Meanwhile, the leader of Nigeria's Muslims announced plans to hold a national day of prayer in the capital, Abuja, as part of the effort to crackdown on the insurgents.
The Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammad Sa'ad Abubakar III, has invited prominent Muslim leaders to the National Mosque on Sunday to offer "prayers for peace and security".
The event aims to help the country in "overcoming the current security challenges facing the country", a statement printed in several national newspapers said.
The call follows an open letter to the Sultan written by prominent Nigerian rights activist and author Shehu Sani, who has been part of several past effort to end the uprising through dialogue.
Sani said Nigeria's top cleric should do more to help secure the girls' release and northern imams in general "should move beyond prayers and independently move further to reach out to the insurgents".
"The Chibok girls have guns on their heads and chains on their hands and we have a dangling sword of posterity hanging over our heads," he wrote in an open letter published this week.
The security source also criticised Muslim leaders for a lack of action, saying the Sultan should have mobilised them sooner to send "a clear message to Boko Haram that they don't represent Muslim interests".
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