Can Boko Haram be stopped?

Leading expert on Nigeria introduces us to the ordinary people on the frontline in the war against one of the most feared terrorist groups

An insurgency in Nigeria by the Islamist extremist group Boko Haram has left thousands dead, shaken Africa’s biggest country and worried the world. What began as small Islamist sect in the country’s remote northeast, led by a baby-faced but charismatic preacher, has transformed into a hydra-headed monster, deploying suicide bombers and abducting innocent schoolgirls.

Reporting from the ground, Mike Smith traces the roots of this mysterious violent organization and speaks to Nigerians who find themselves caught between frightening insurgents, brutal abusive security forces and an inept government.

Journeying through the sleaze and corruption, which is robbing Africa’s biggest oil producer of its potential and allowing it to become a fertile ground for extremism, the author questions how this unholy war (waged against the backdrop of an evolving extremist threat worldwide) begun and how it might eventually be stopped.