I ‘ll defeat regional force, says Shekau in new video

Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau vowed in a new video released on
Monday that the group would defeat a regional force fighting the extremists in
Nigeria’s far northeast, Niger and Cameroon.
“Your alliance will not achieve anything. Amass all your weapons and face us.
We welcome you,” he said in a 28-minute speech, one of three videos posted
by the Islamists on YouTube.
Troops from Nigeria have been backed by soldiers from Chad, Cameroon and
Niger in recent weeks because of increased concerns about Boko Haram’s
threat to regional security.
In the second of the latest videos, images of the leader of the Islamic State
group, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, are shown along with archive footage and a
voiceover recalling a battle between British colonial soldiers and fighters from
the Sokoto Caliphate in northern Nigeria.
In this screen grab image taken on February 9, 2015 from a video made
available by Islamist group Boko Haram, leader Abubakar Shekau (C)
makes a statement at an undisclosed location. Boko Haram leader
Abubakar Shekau vowed in a new video released on January 9, 2015
that the group would defeat a regional force fighting the militants in
Nigeria’s far northeast, Niger and Cameroon.”AFP PHOTO / BOKO
HARAM” -
Shekau has namechecked al-Baghdadi before but appears to be positioning
Boko Haram in a wider jihadi context by showing the Sokoto Caliphate, which
was dismantled by the British in the early 20th century.
“We never rose up to fight Africa. We rose up to fight the world,” he said.
“We are going to fight the world on the principle that whoever doesn’t obey
Allah and the Prophet to either obey or die or become a slave.”
On Sunday, Boko Haram militants waged twin attacks in the town of Diffa in
southeast Niger, opening a new front in its offensive after repeated attacks in
Cameroon’s far northern region.
The six-year uprising has become a regional crisis and on Saturday, Nigeria,
Chad, Niger, Cameroon and Benin agreed to muster 8,700 troops, police and
civilians to fight the group.
But Shekau dismissed the size of the force, which had previously been set at
about 7,500.
“You send 7,000 troops? Why don’t you send 70 million? This is small. Only
7,000? By Allah, it is small. We can seize them one-by-one. We can seize
them one-by-one,” he said in Arabic.
Shekau also directly threatened Chad’s President Idriss Deby, whose forces
have attacked Boko Haram in the northeast Nigerian towns of Gamboru and
Malam Fatori in recent days.
Shekau’s challenge comes after the United States said on Friday that Boko
Haram could face a stronger test against more capable regional forces.
Washington estimates that Boko Haram has a core of between 4,000 and
6,000 fighters but is well-equipped after raiding Nigerian Army positions.