Since gaining independence in 1960, Nigeria has suffered waves of political instability, including half a dozen coups, decades of military rule, and a civil war (1967–1970) that claimed up to two million lives. Despite efforts by the elected government and Nigerian military to eradicate Boko Haram, the terrorist group has sustained its presence in the country.
The military has sought to crack down on the Boko Haram insurgency through heavy-handed raids, which have resulted in widespread accusations of human rights abuses.
In 2015, Muhammadu Buhari won the presidency by promising to crush two scourges that had plagued the nation for years: endemic corruption and a war with Islamist extremists. Buhari has been largely unsuccessful in keeping his promises but in March 2019 he was re-elected in what most watchdog organizations consider an unfair election (CFR). While some areas enjoy basic access to rights and freedoms, much of the northeast of the country has faced sectarian violence, largely at the hands of Boko Haram, and more recently, communal violence between farmers and herders (or pastoralists). According to the International Crisis Group, the latter conflict has overtaken the Boko Haram crisis as the deadliest conflict in Nigeria, killing six times more Nigerians than Boko Haram did in the same period.
Primary Terrorist Presence in Nigeria –
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