The Islamist group called "Vanguards for the Protection
of Muslims in Black Africa", also known as Ansaru, is a terrorist
organisation aligned with al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM). It operates
in the Northern part of Nigeria, as a dissident fraction of the better known
network of terrorists Boko Haram. They have specialised in the kidnapping of
Western nationals working in the country.
Yesterday they executed seven hostages that they had taken
recently. The circumstances of these killings remain unclear. But I suspect
that the Ansaru men might have felt threatened by an impending military operation
against them, most likely involving some form of cooperation between the armed
forces of Nigeria and a Western secret service. If that was the case it would mean that someone in
the know might have warned the terrorists. A Western “muscled presence” in
those corners of the country is very conspicuous.
Lessons need to be drawn then. Northern Nigeria is not a
safe place, neither for white civilians nor for Western services. When it comes
to hostages, the job should be done by the Nigerian Special Forces and
intelligence officers. They can go far and wide, if the political green light
comes from Abuja.
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