On Saturday evening, carloads of Boko Haram insurgents descended on the northern Nigerian village of Dalori, where they set fire to houses, burned children alive, shot residents, and detonated bombs amid fleeing crowds. Pictures show the place razed to the ground. At least 85 people died, authorities say. Many bodies were charred beyond recognition. Even the cattle were killed.
For people in these parts such appalling tales are all too familiar. Nigeria’s marauding jihadists have been pushed back in the past year, yet they still frequently unleash their wrath on the four countries of the Lake Chad basin- Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria.
The army’s response, by contrast, was particularly feeble. The jihadists have taken to using hit-and-run tactics—raiding rural settlements for food, money and human chattel—since they were rebuffed in their efforts to take and hold territory in early in 2015. Defending scattered villages against such attacks is difficult. It seems likely that the militants drove there from their remote hideouts over roads patrolled by soldiers and vigilantes. Yet they were not stopped.
Nigeria’s army has been similarly embarrassed in the past (they had hours of warning before girls were kidnapped in Chibok two years ago, yet did not act), but not of late. Soldiers were better armed ahead of an offensive early last year. Morale soared when Muhammadu Buhari, a former military ruler who promised to stamp out the insurgency, became president in May. And there have been efforts to clamp down on the corruption that has starved front-line troops of the guns and ammunition they need. Yet this weekend’s massacre suggests that Nigeria’s army has not resolved all of its problems.
Continuing complaints about ammunition shortages, despite efforts to equip the soliders better, could explain the slow response. So too could poor communications and inadequate training. Another point of concern is the army’s alleged involvement in war crimes and abuses of human rights—hardly the sorts of things likely to engender trust among local villagers whose support is needed.
Nigeria’s forces are in an unenviable position. They face an uprising in the south-east, militants in the oil-producing Niger delta and sectarian clashes in the centre. Meanwhile, falling oil prices are putting pressure on military spending, says John Campbell, former American ambassador to Nigeria. A regional response could help, but soldiers belonging to a “multinational joint task force”—to which Nigeria has allocated millions of dollars—barely communicate.
It was reported last week that funding for a multinational force remains well short of its target. So far donors, including Nigeria and France, have pledged about $250m to fund the 8,700-strong regional force, the African Union’s Peace and Security Council said after a meeting in Addis Ababa to discuss funding last week. The $250m includes both previous pledges and those made during Monday’s conference, said Orlando Bama, communications officer for the African Union’s Peace and Security Council. He did not give further details.
That covers just over a third of the $700m budget announced for the Multi-National Joint Task Force (MNJTF) last year. The task force -- to be made up of regional African militaries -- has yet to mobilise. Instead, regional armies from Niger, Chad, Nigeria and Cameroon mounted an offensive against the insurgents last year that ousted them from many positions in northern Nigeria. The US has also sent troops to supply intelligence and other assistance.
But progress has been slow.
