Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Nigerian Terror: The Rise Of Boko Haram, Kelly Moss

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

The Boko Haram insurgency in Nigeria was the world’s deadliest terrorist group of 2014, second deadliest in 2015, and is one of the most perplexing terrorist groups to arise in the past 50 years. This study sought to identify how Boko Haram rose to power in Nigeria, and found the following factors to be explanatory: Nigeria’s weak state capacity stemming from colonialism and poor post-colonial governance, the politicization of religion, and Boko Haram’s relationship with other terrorist organizations such as Al-Shabab, Al-Qaeda, and Daesh. This study further analyzed domestic and international responses to Boko Haram, up to present day, and …