Now Is the Time to Take on al-Qaida in Africa

There's an old American expression : "Fish or cut bait." And horrific as the kidnapping and threatened sale of 287 teenaged Nigerian schoolgirls is - it could be, it just may be, that it is the turning point in the rarely opposed expansion of African jihadist terrorist groups trained and funded by al-Qaida - it could be the moment when the continent and the world realize that sitting back cutting bait just won't be enough, it's time to fish. That is not to say that the war is over, not by a long shot. ~~~~~ The kidnapping of 287 schoolgirls three weeks ago by Boko Haram has gradually ignited Nigerians' revulsion, bringing them together under the #bringbackourgirls tag on the internet. Angry Nigerian protesters have spilled onto the streets this week, supported by a growing worldwide internet support campaign that has seriously shaken President Goodluck Jonathan and his previously disengaged government. Jonathan had hoped to showcase the country's emergence as Africa's largest economy as host of the Africa meeting of the World Economic Forum, the continent's version of Davos. That meeting is ongoing in the Nigerian capital, Abuja, which also has been the recent scene of two bomb blasts blamed on Boko Haram. The Boko Haram terrorist group has operated for 12 years in northern Nigeria, killing thousands of people - Christians as well as Moslems - in a campaign of bombing and massacres. But, it expanded its reach in 2010 with the help of al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, the al-Qaida terrorist network's affiliate in West Africa which was also involved in the Benghazi attack. AQIM took in Boko Haram fighters for training in its camps in southern Somalia, beginning in 2010, and after that, Boko Haram's attacks and executions have escalated. Funding sources for Boko Haram are unclear, but it seems to be partially funded by bank robberies and by other Islamist groups. In February 2012, arrested officials revealed that "donations from members, its links with al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, AQIM, opened it up to more funding from groups in Saudi Arabia and the UK." They went on to say that other sources of funding included the Al Muntada Trust Fund and the Islamic World Society. Boko Haram also extorts local governments for so-called "protection money." ~~~~~ But, Boko Haram's mass abduction of the schoolgirls may have been the step too far. It appears to have galvanized global attention and offers of security assistance from foreign countries to help rescue the girls. The US has promised support, including personnel and equipment to assist with communications, logistics and intelligence planning, but will not provide any military operations. Britain and China said Nigeria had accepted their offers of help in the form of euipment and personnel, and France said it was sending in a "specialized team" already in French West Africa to help with search and rescue of the girls. Nigerian President Jonathan in a phone call with David Cameron shortly after the prime minister told the Commons that the mass abduction was "an act of pure evil," said the abductions had "united people across the planet to stand with Nigeria to help find these children and return them to their parents." Cameron said that Britain was ready to provide whatever assistance it could. President Obama has said the US is doing its utmost to help bring the "terrible situation" to a swift and safe end. ~~~~~ But in a defiant act, on Tuesday Boko Haram attacked Gamboru, a town in northeastern Nigeria near the border with Cameroon. Residents who survived the Boko Haram attack criticized government security forces for failing to intervene even though they had been warned that the militants were camped in the bush nearby. At least 50 bodies have been recovered, many horribly burned, in the latest chapter of the Islamist militants' relentless campaign of terror. The number of people killed in the Gamboru attack was initially reported by a senator to be as many as 300. Some Gamboru residents said bodies were recovered from the debris of burned shops around the town's main market, which was the focus of the attack. Bodies were discovered when the market reopened on Wednesday as health workers, volunteers and traders searched for missing people. Survivors report that most of the bodies were burned beyond recognition. Some of the victims were traders from Chad and Cameroon. "They hid in shops so as not (to) be killed while fleeing," an official explained, but the attackers threw bombs into the market, killing them in the burning buildings. More than 1,500 Nigerians have been killed this year by Boko Haram, who behead, slash with machetes and burn their victims. ~~~~~ Dear readers, it would be comforting to believe that Boko Haram is the only well-trained and well-financed extremist jihadist terrorist group operating in Africa. It is not. AL Shabaab / al-Qaida in the Islamic Magreb / Boko Haram -- all connected across west, north and east Africa by joint training camps and funding. Terrorism experts estimate that about half of the $120 million paid in ransoms to terrorist groups worldwide since 2004 has gone to al-Qaida’s branches and affiliated groups in Africa, providing funds to pay fighters, buy increasingly sophisticated weaponry and underwrite al-Qaida operatives elsewhere. Elsewhere includes Mali, Libya and Algeria where separate groups are forming and training. Denmark and Burkina Faso are in a partnership to eliminate extremists - Denmark has pledged $22 million. Switzerland is helping several African countries to combat money laundering by terrorist groups. France is active in Mali and drove out AQIM last year. But, more is needed and now. Afghanistan and Pakistan and Yemen prove how difficult al-Qaida is to dislodge once it takes root. Now is the time to eliminate al-Qaida in Africa.