Forty four individuals in Nigeria have been sentenced to prison terms ranging from 10 to 30 years with hard labour for their involvement in financing Boko Haram, the country’s notorious jihadist militant group. The sentences were delivered by four special courts operating from a military base in Kanji, located in Niger State, according to the national counter-terrorism agency.
Ten additional defendants are awaiting trial, as their cases were postponed.
Since 2017, Nigeria has conducted mass trials for terrorism related offenses and has secured convictions in 785 cases, official sources report.
Boko Haram launched its insurgency in northeastern Nigeria in 2002, later extending its influence to neighboring countries including Cameroon, Chad, and Niger. The group, rooted in a strict Wahhabi ideology, opposes Western influences in Nigeria, which it claims are responsible for widespread corruption.
Its violent tactics have included suicide bombings and armed attacks, notably targeting the United Nations building in Abuja. One of its most infamous acts occurred in 2014, when militants abducted 276 schoolgirls in Chibok and set fire to a government college killing numerous schoolboys trapped inside.
