# The Boko Haram Insurgency

> Boko Haram, founded by Mohammed Yusuf in 2002 in Maiduguri, launched an armed uprising in 2009 and has since fought a Nigerian-led coalition across the Lake Chad Basin. The UN attributed more than 40,000 deaths and over 2 million people displaced in Nigeria's north-east by January 2026; documented abuses include militant attacks on civilians and schools alongside Nigerian military conduct criticised by Human Rights Watch.

**Category:** Military & Security · **Updated:** 2026-07-26 19:36:35 · **Canonical:** https://nigeriastuff.org/a/boko-haram-insurgency

## Key facts
- **Founded:** 2002, Maiduguri, Borno State, by Mohammed Yusuf
- **Armed uprising began:** July 2009; Yusuf died in police custody, 30 July 2009
- **Best-known mass abduction:** Chibok, 14–15 April 2014, 276 schoolgirls taken
- **ISWAP split from Shekau's JAS faction:** 2016
- **Abubakar Shekau's death:** 19 May 2021, per ISWAP's own account
- **Deaths since 2009:** 40,000+ (UN, Jan 2026); other counts range c. 10,000–35,000 depending on cutoff and method
- **Displacement:** 2+ million in the north-east; 3.5 million nationally when related conflicts are included (UN, Jan 2026)
- **Current dynamic:** ISWAP dominant over weakened JAS; Nigerian authorities report 300,000+ surrenders since 2016

## Sources
- Islamist leader killed in Nigeria — Al Jazeera (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2009/7/31/islamist-leader-killed-in-nigeria)
- Nigeria: At Least 1,000 Civilians Dead Since January — Human Rights Watch (https://www.hrw.org/news/2015/03/26/nigeria-least-1000-civilians-dead-january)
- "They Set the Classrooms on Fire": Attacks on Education in Northeast Nigeria — Human Rights Watch (https://www.hrw.org/report/2016/04/11/they-set-classrooms-fire/attacks-education-northeast-nigeria)
- Defections alone won't break ISWAP terror group — Institute for Security Studies (ISS Africa) (https://issafrica.org/iss-today/defections-alone-won-t-break-iswap-terror-group)
- ISIS ordered us to kill Boko Haram's leader — ISWAP confirms Shekau's death — Daily Post (Nigeria) (https://dailypost.ng/2021/06/05/isis-ordered-us-to-kill-boko-harams-leader-iswap-confirms-shekaus-death/)
- Violence roiling Nigeria extends beyond religious lines, amid a shifting security landscape — UN News (https://news.un.org/en/story/2026/01/1166857)
- Nigeria's counterterrorism gains carry a warning — Al Jazeera (Opinion) (https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2026/7/8/nigerias-counterterrorism-gains-carry-a-warning)
- World Report 2026: Nigeria chapter — Human Rights Watch (https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2026/country-chapters/nigeria)

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