Boko Haram fighters 'surrender' as alleged chief killed

Boko Haram fighters 'surrender' as alleged
chief killed
25 September 2014 Africa
The military says Mohammed Bashir was an imposter
posing as Boko Haram's leader Abubakar Shekau
More than 260 Islamist militants have surrendered in north-
eastern Nigeria, the military has said.
Soldiers had also killed a man who featured in Boko
Haram's propaganda videos pretending to be the group's
leader Abubakar Shekau, it added.
Last year, the military said that Shekau may have been
killed, without providing any proof.
Boko Haram has suffered heavy losses in recent weeks in
battles in its stronghold of north-eastern Nigeria.
The military said that 135 Boko Haram members
surrendered with their weapons in Biu, Borno state, on
Tuesday - and that 133 others surrendered elsewhere in
north-eastern Nigeria.
'Eccentric character'
The BBC's Will Ross in Lagos says that the claims are
impossible to verify.
However, if they are true, it could be a major turning point
for the army's campaign against Boko Haram militants, our
correspondent adds.
The kidnapping of more than 200 schoolgirls in April
sparked a worldwide campaign for their release
The government is under pressure to secure the release
of schoolgirls abducted in April
General Chris Olukolade of the Nigerian military said that a
man named Mohammed Bashir was among those killed in
the latest offensive against Boko Haram last week.
Bashir "had been acting or posing in videos as the deceased
Abubakar Shekau, the eccentric character known as leader
of the group", he said.
'Foreign-backed'
Gen Olukolade did not give further details.
In a statement in August 2013, the military said intelligence
reports indicated that Shekau "may have died" in a shoot-
out with government forces at a Boko Haram camp in the
vast Sambisa Forest, along Nigeria's border with Cameroon,
about two months earlier.
Boko Haram's insurgency has caused much destruction
in north and central Nigeria
But Nigerian journalist Ahmad Salkida, who has good
contacts in Boko Haram, says on on his Twitter account
that he has it "on authority that Shekau is well and alive".
He said he met Shekau during a failed attempt to negotiate
the release of 200 schoolgirls who were abducted by Boko
Haram in April.
Who are Boko Haram?
Founded in 2002
Initially focused on opposing Western education - Boko
Haram means "Western education is forbidden" in the
Hausa language
Launched military operations in 2009 to create an
Islamic state
Thousands killed, mostly in north-eastern Nigeria - but
also attacks on police and UN headquarters in capital,
Abuja
Some three million people affected
Declared terrorist group by US in 2013
Who are Boko Haram?
Profile: Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau
Since the abduction, which caused international outrage, a
man purporting to be Shekau has appeared in videos,
taunting the military and declaring the establishment of a
caliphate in areas controlled by Boko Haram.
Speaking at the United Nations Security Council meeting,
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan urged the council to
find more ways to combat the militant threat.
"Evidence has shown that Boko Haram is sourced largely
from outside our country," he said.
"Only by united action and firm resolve can we check this
urgent threat to humanity and also build the enduring
structures that will resist their re-emergence."
"Boko Haram" means "Western education is forbidden" in
Arabic, and the group frequently attacks schools and
colleges, which it sees as a symbol of Western culture.
The New York-based Human Rights Watch says more thanthan

2,000 civilians have been killed in the region this year.