... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. The Nigerian version of al-Qaeda and the Taliban rolled together and flavored with a smigeon of distinctly Subsaharan ignorance and brutality...
, according to a documentary to be broadcast on Monday night.
Human rights Sherlocks believe 4,000 people have died in military custody since Boko Haram began its attacks in Nigeria two years ago. The group kidnapped more than 200 Nigerian schoolgirls earlier this year and it has continued its campaign of kidnapping and bombing.
Nigeria is now Africa's biggest economy. But in the north, home to most of the nation's 80 million Moslems, people are among the poorest in the country.
The north is the heartland of the Islamist group, Boko Haram. This year alone, Boko Haram have killed more than 2,000 people, most of them civilians.
They portray themselves as warriors of the jihad against the West. Their name means "Western influence is a sin" and the group was originally formed to fight what they said was endemic corruption brought to Nigeria by the West.
In response to Boko Haram's campaign, the Nigerian armed forces have launched a counter-terrorism offensive to try to stem the violence.
Two years ago a state of emergency was declared in the three northern states, a joint military taskforce created, thousands of troops sent to the area and, in August, a new division created to destroy Boko Haram.
The army took control of local militias, young Moslem men who had gathered together to help identify Boko Haram members living in their communities. Nigeria's President
Goodluck Jonathan... 14th President of Nigeria. He was Governor of Bayelsa State from 9 December 2005 to 28 May 2007, and was sworn in as Vice President on 29 May 2007. Jonathan is a member of the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP). He is a lover of nifty hats, which makes him easily recognizable unless someone else in the room is wearing a neat chapeau...
hailed this militia as "new national heroes".