Ansaru

Not to be confused with Jabhat Ansar al-Islam.
For other uses, see Ansar ul Islam (disambiguation).

Vanguard for the Protection of Muslims in Black Africa[1]
(Ansaru)
  • جماعة أنصار المسلمين في بلاد السودان
  • Jamāʿatu Anṣāril Muslimīna fī Bilādis Sūdān
Leaders
  • Abubakar Adam Kambar ("Abu Yasir") †[2]
  • Khalid Barnawi ("Abu Usamatal Ansari") (POW)[2][3]
    Abu Jafa'ar (spokesman)[4]
Dates of operation
  • c. 2009–2012 (as Boko Haram faction)[2]
  • 2012–present (officially[2])[5]
Active regionsNorthern Nigeria
IdeologyIslamic fundamentalist Jihadism[6]
Size2,000–3,000 (2013)[7]
Part of
Allies
Opponents
Battles and wars
Designated as a terrorist group bysee section

The Vanguard for the Protection of Muslims in Black Africa (Arabic: جماعة أنصار المسلمين في بلاد السودان Jamāʿatu Anṣāril Muslimīna fī Bilādis Sūdān),[13] better known as Ansaru and less commonly called al-Qaeda in the Lands Beyond the Sahel,[9] is an Islamic fundamentalist Jihadist militant organisation originally based in the northeast of Nigeria. Originally a faction of Boko Haram, the group announced in 2012 that it had pledged allegiance to al-Qaeda and was independent. Despite this, Ansaru and other Boko Haram factions continued to work closely together until the former increasingly declined and stopped its insurgent activities in 2013. The group was revived in 2020, and has been involved in the Nigerian bandit conflict

  1. ^ "Boko Haram : Splinter group, Ansaru emerges - Vanguard News". Archived from the original on 18 May 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d ICG 2014, pp. 26, 27.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference arrested was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "Ansaru: A Profile of Nigeria's Newest Jihadist Movement". Jamestown Foundation. 10 January 2013. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 21 January 2013.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Electronic Jihad was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Comolli (2015), p. 103.
  7. ^ ""L'intervention française au Mali a déplacé la menace djihadiste vers le sud"". LEFIGARO. 18 November 2013. Archived from the original on 6 February 2020. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  8. ^ ICG 2014, p. 27.
  9. ^ a b Magnus Taylor (24 October 2013). "Expert interview: Jacob Zenn – On terrorism and insurgency in Northern Nigeria". African Arguments. Archived from the original on 19 March 2015. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  10. ^ "Hot Issue: Boko Haram's Mass-Kidnapping in Chibok: Shekau's Gains and Objectives". Jamestown. Archived from the original on 15 June 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  11. ^ a b "Ansaru reaffirms its allegiance to al Qaeda". 2 January 2020. Archived from the original on 2 January 2022. Retrieved 11 September 2024.
  12. ^ Comolli (2015), pp. 103, 171.
  13. ^ ICG 2014, p. 26.