LAGOS, Nigeria

A man the Nigerian army has described as a leading member of the Boko Haram militant group could neither read the Quran, the Muslim holy book, nor explain how Muslim prayers were performed, according to video footage of his interrogation seen by Anadolu Agency.

Bulama Modu is said to be a Boko Haram commander from the Bulakuri area of Nigeria’s restive northeastern region, where, according to army spokesmen, dozens of militants were recently captured by the army, according to army spokesman Sani Usman. 

“I don’t know how to read the Quran,” the captured militant chief admits in the footage in response to interrogators’ questions about his understanding of Islamic jurisprudence.

He adds: “And I don't know how to perform [Muslim] prayers either.”

While Boko Haram says it wants to establish an Islamic state in Nigeria's mainly Muslim north, the group is despised by most Nigerian Muslims who view its violent activities – which include frequent attacks on civilian targets – as entirely un-Islamic.