After three attacks in as many weeks — in Paris, Beirut and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula — in which a total of at least 397 people were killed, the world's attention is fixed on the Islamic State and its horrific brutality.
But in northeastern Nigeria, another group is even deadlier: Boko Haram.
The Nigerian jihadist group was behind the killings of 6,644 people in 2014, compared to 6,073 deaths at the hands of ISIS militants, according to the 2015 Global Terrorism Index, published by the Institute for Economics and Peace on Wednesday.
IMAGE: AP PHOTO/JOSSY OLA
The death count in Nigeria rose just as the report was released. At least 14 people were killed and more than 100 were wounded after two female suicide bombers blew themselves up outside a busy market in the northern town of Kano; Nigerian authorities blamed Boko Haram for the attacks.
Those bombings came less than 24 hours after another, also allegedly carried out by Boko Haram, that left 34 people dead and 80 others injured at a market in the nearby city of Yola on Tuesday.
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari urged Nigerians to be on alert in a statement on Wednesday, warning that his military may not be powerful enough to stave off more attacks by Boko Haram. However, he said, he is very much determined to "wipe out" the group.
IMAGE: AP PHOTO/MUHAMMED GIGINYU
Buhari and the country's military have been credited with shrinking the group's territory this year and forcing them to hide in the rough terrains around Lake Chad and the Mandara Mountains in Cameroon. But the recent attacks and new report highlight just how dangerous the group remains.
Boko Haram and ISIS were responsible for 51% of all terrorist-related deaths in the world last yearBoko Haram and ISIS were responsible for 51% of all terrorist-related deaths in the world last year, while the deaths attributed to Boko Haram alone increased by more than 300%, according to the Global Terrorism Index.
Many similarities run between the two groups. Like ISIS, Boko Haram has declared a so-called caliphate in the territory it controls in Nigeria. It also publishes similar propaganda videosthat feature gruesome executions, and its ambitions range from enforcing Sharia law across Nigeria to overthrowing the government and destroying the state, much like ISIS in Iraq and Syria.
So it came as no surprise when Boko Haram pledged allegiance to ISIS in March 2015.
Boko Haram, also like ISIS, wants to expand its territory. In trying to do so, the group has launched attacks in neighboring Cameroon, Chad, and Niger.
More often than not, Boko Haram targets private citizens, "most often with firearms resulting in very high levels of deaths per attack," according to the report.
Boko Haram made headlines in 2014 after more than 276 Nigerian schoolgirls were kidnapped. The abductions spawned the global hashtag campaign #BringBackOurGirls; 57 girls eventually escaped, but 219 never came back, and Boko Haram continued its violent campaign.
Boko Haram was founded in 2002, but it didn't launch military campaigns until 2009. The group's name, Boko Haram — "Haram" in Arabic means "forbidden" — signifies its stance against the West, particularly Western education. But the form of Islam it promotes stands against all things Western and secular.
Boko Haram's brutality has not been lost on the U.S., which designated it a terrorist group in 2013. Washington has since provided training, equipment and funding to countries under attack by Boko Haram, and President Obama authorized the deployment of 300 U.S. troops to Cameroon, along with unarmed Predator drones, to help in their fight against the group.
IMAGE: AP PHOTO/EVAN VUCCI
The violence in northeastern Nigeria and surrounding areas has displaced more than 2.5 million people since May 2013. Many have joined other sub-Saharan Africans, as well as refugees from Arab nations, in fleeing to Europe in search of sanctuary.
In August, Mashable spoke with several Nigerian refugees fleeing violence in their home country by boat in the central Mediterranean. Aboard a search and rescue ship, 20-year-old Amanda from northern Nigeria spoke about the barbarity of Boko Haram fighters, who she said had kidnapped her family and slaughtered many of her friends and neighbors.
Job, a welder from the same region who had fled his home after Boko Haram began terrorizing the region, said "all the time, we are running for our dear lives."
The total number of deaths from terrorism in 2014 was 32,685The total number of deaths from terrorism in 2014 was 32,685, an 80% jump from 18,111 in 2013 and the highest level ever recorded.
While attacks in Western countries typically get more attention from Western media, more than 78% of those terrorism-related deaths happened in Nigeria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Syria.
In total, 67 countries had at least one or more deaths from terrorism in 2014, compared to 59 countries the previous year.
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