Chad attacks predict new Boko Haram terror campaign: Experts

TUNIS, Tunisia

Multiple attacks in the heart of Chad's capital N’Djamena on Monday – which left 33 people dead and at least 100 injured – may presage a fresh spate of “dramatic attacks” by a revitalized Boko Haram, some African experts say. 

According to Bakary Sambe, a Senegalese political scientist and researcher at Timbuktu, a think tank, Nigeria’s Boko Haram "seems to challenge one of the strongest armies in the region and now wants to bring terror in areas where it is least expected".

He believes Boko Haram will likely now target the countries participating in a regional coalition currently arrayed against it, which include Cameroon, Niger, Benin, Nigeria and Chad.

Sambe – the author of a book, "L’argent de Boko Haram" (“Boko Haram’s Money”) – said such attacks would send a strong message to countries of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), which was established last week in the Nigerian capital Abuja.

With a budget of $30 million, the N'djamena-based MNJTF plans to send an 8,700-strong regional force to combat Boko Haram.

According to Sambe, Boko Haram now appears to have changed its mode of operation, with the group now trying to frighten people off from collaborating with the authorities.

The political scientist went on to predict that Boko Haram would try to exploit ongoing political upheaval in the region to expand southward from Libya.

Asked whether Boko Haram was working with any of the armed groups currently operating in southern Libya, Sambe said that such a scenario was unlikely, as the Nigerian group had its own vision and strategy. 

Since the inauguration of Nigerian President Muhamadu Buhari on May 29, Boko Haram has stepped up its attacks in Nigeria's north, killing at least 109 people, according to official sources.