US report reveals growing ties between Nigeria's Boko Haram and Al-Qaeda

EVENT

There were media reports on 7 and 8 August quoting some United States intelligence officials that the Boko Haram insurgent group had participated in the recently intercepted Al-Qaeda 'conference call', which led to the closure of 20 US embassies.

The US embassy in Abuja, Nigeria, was not among the four embassies closed in Sub-Saharan Africa, although those in Rwanda, Burundi, Mauritius, and Madagascar were closed. Notwithstanding, on 31 July, the US embassy in Nigeria announced that it was suspending plans to open a consular office in Kano, in the north. The Kano consular office would have been the third in Nigeria and would serve the northern part of the country, in addition to the one in Lagos, serving the south; and that of Abuja serving the central and middle belt of the country.

FORECAST

In the event of collaboration and greater contact between Al-Qaeda and Islamist militants in Nigeria, this will have far-reaching implications for the groups' capability and target set in Nigeria. So far, Islamist militants have not included commercial assets including oil and gas installations and facilities in their target set, as is the case with AQIM and its affiliates, which have attacked commercial assets in Algeria and Niger.

AB-BRIEFED STORY  click here to read more (us reports)