Cross-National Trends in Female Terrorism in West Africa
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31150/ajshr.v4i4.2161Keywords:
Women, terrorism, West Africa, Boko Haram, ISWAPAbstract
The sensationalism of women blowing themselves up helped to galvanize interest in female members of terrorist organizations and spurned a myriad of studies on female terrorism. In spite of the abundance of literature, there is however a lack of cumulative development, a follow-up of the previous trend. This multiplicity of approaches and disciplines ‘results in the juxtaposition of competing hypotheses with no comparison across and between findings. Several gaps are discernible here that prompt further epistemological forays into female terrorism. This research attempts to fill this gap, by examining female terrorism across West Africa, investigating motives, roles played, and intersections of class, religion and ethnicity. Scholarly attention towards these questions will help create a comprehensive strategy for policy implementation in the fight against terrorism
References
Abatan, E. (2018). The role of women in West Africa’s violent extremist groups. In ISS Today. Institute for Security Studies. Retrieved from: https://www.issafrica.org/iss-today/the-role-of-women-in-west-africas-violent-extremist-groups.html on 31st March, 2020.
Akanonu, P. (2020, April 6). Mythbusting gender roles within violent extremist groups in Africa. Southern Voice. Retrieved from: https://www.southernvoice.org/mythbusting-gender-roles-within-violent-extremist-groups-in-Africa/html on 2nd May, 2020.
Babatunde, O. 2018. The recruitment mode of the Boko Haram terrorist group in Nigeria. In Peace Review Journal-A Journal of Social Justice, Vol. 30. London: Taylor and Francis Group, LLC. Pp.382-389.
Banks, C. (2019). Women & Criminal Justice. California: Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. Pp. 181–187.
Bigio, J. & Vogelstein, R. (2019). Women and Terrorism Hidden Threats, Forgotten Partners. Discussion Paper, May 2019. New York: Council on Foreign Relations (CFR).
Blake, J. (2019, Feburary 1). Terrorism threatens a former oasis of stability in West Africa. Retrieved from: https://www.foreignpolicy.com/2019/02/01/terrorism-threatens-a-former-oasis-of-stability-in-west-africa-burkina-faso-mali-compaore/html on 3rd May, 2020.
BoasM.(2013, October 4). The international intervention in Mali: ‘desert blues’ or a new beginning? In International Journal:Canada’s Journal of Global Policy Analysis(ii). Retrieved from: http://www.ijx.sagepub.com/content/early/2013/10/04/0020702013505430.full On 15th May, 2020.
Bryson, R. &Bukarti, A. (2018). Boko Haram’s Split on Women in Combat. London: Tony Blair Institute for Global Change.
Bukarti, A. (2017, January 26). What a Recent Attack Tells Us About Boko Haram’s Ideology. Discussion Paper at Tony Blair Institute for Global Change. Retrieved from: https://www.institute.global/insight/co-existence/what-recent-attack-tells-us-aboutboko-harams-ideology on 1st April, 2020.
Cold-Ravnkilde, S. &Plambech, S. (2015). Boko Haram: Fromlocal grievances to violent insurgency. DIIS Report. No. 21. Copenhagen: Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS). ISBN 978-87-7605-786-2.
Encyclopaedia Britannica (2020). Burkina Faso: Facts, geography and history. Retrieved from: https://www.britannica.com/place/Burkina-Faso/html
Felbab-Brown, V. (2017, June 8). Under the hot Sahel sun: “Post”-Boko Haram challenges in Niger and Nigeria. The Brookings Institution. Retrieved from: https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2017/06/08/under-the-hot-sahel-sun-post-boko-haram-challenges-in-niger-and-nigeria/html On 30th April, 2020.
FIDH/AMDH (2018). In Central Mali, Civilian Populations Are Caught Between Terrorism and Counterterrorism. Paris: European Union and the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs.
Government of Niger.(2002).Poverty Reduction Strategy Document, Niamey, Niger.Demographic and Health Survey, Niamey, Niger. Government of Niger, Office of the Prime Minister.
International Civil Society Action Network & UN Development Program. (2019).Invisible women: Gendered dimensions of return, rehabilitation and reintegration from violent extremism. Retrieved from: https://icanpeacework.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/ICAN-UNDP-Rehabilitation-Reintegration-Invisible-Women-Report-2019.pdf. On 13th April, 2020.
International Crisis Group (ICG) (a). (2017, February 27). Niger and Boko Haram: Beyond Counter-insurgency. Retrieved from: https://www.crisisgroup.org/africa/west-africa/niger/niger-and-boko-haram-beyond-counter-insurgency on 21st April, 2020.
International Crisis Group (ICG)(b). (2017, October 21). The social roots of jihadist violence in Burkina Faso’s North. Retrieved from: https://www.crisisgroup.org/africa/west-africa/burkina-faso/social-roots-of-jihadist-violence/html on 30th April, 2020.
International Crisis Group (ICG). (2016, December 5). Nigeria: Women and the Boko Haram Insurgency. Retrieved from: https://www.crisisgroup.org/africa/west-africa/nigeria/nigeria-women-and-boko-haram-insurgency on 31st March, 2020.
International Crisis Group (ICG). (2019, May 21). Returning from the Land of Jihad: The Fate of Women Associated with Boko Haram. Retrieved from: https://www.crisisgroup.org/africa/west-africa/nigeria/returning-from-the-land-of-jihad/htmlon 28th April, 2020.
Kudoadzi, A. (2013). Wife Seclusion in Niger in the 20th century: Finding the crossroads between tradition and women’s agency. Published Seminar paper, submitted to Professor Donna Patterson on AFR 252: History of Francophone Africa.
Lackenbauer,H., Lindell, M.&Ingerstad,G. (2015). "If our men won't fight, we will"- A gendered analysis of the armed conflict in northern Mali. FOI-R--4121--SE, Stockholm. Pp 1-77.
Lord-Mallam, N. (2019). Women and terrorism in Nigeria. Das, R. (Ed.) The Impact of Global Terrorism on Economic and Political Development. Emerald Publishing Limited. pp.321-340. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-78769-919-920191026
Maza, K., Koldas,U.&Aksit,S. (2020). Challenges of countering terrorist recruitment in the Lake Chad Region: The case of Boko Haram. In OnlineJournal of Religions. Basel, Switzerland: MDPI.
Moaveni, A. (2019, January 14). What would make a woman go back to Boko Haram? Despair? In The Guardian Newspaper. Retrieved from: https://www.theguardian.com/world-news/africa/women/boko-haram/html on 2nd May, 2020.
Open Government Licence. (2020). Foreign travel advice: Chad and terrorism. Retrieved from: https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/chad/terrorism/html on 11th April, 2020.
Sarch, M.(2001). Fishing and farming at Lake Chad: Institutions for access to natural resources. In Journal of Environmental Management no. 62 (2). doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1006/jema.2001.0430.
Slutzker, J. (2018). The Online Frontline: Inside Boko Haram’s social media and a movement to push back. In Creatives Feed. Washington: Creatives Associates International. https://www.creativesassociatesinternational.com/stories/the-online-frontline-inside-boko-harams-social-media-and-a-movement-to-push-back/html
Thurston, A. (2015). Guest Post: An account from Diffa, Niger about the War with Boko Haram. Retrieved from: https://sahelblog.wordpress.com/2015/07/16/guest-post-an-account-from-diffaniger-about-the-war-with-boko-haram/ On 21st April, 2020.
UNDP (2019). Invisible Women: Gendered Dimensions of Return, Rehabilitation and Reintegration from Violent Extremism. New York:UNDP’s Bureau for Policy and Programme Support and the Oslo Governance Centre.
Withnall, A. (2016, Feburary 18). The victims of rape whose children will always be ‘half a terrorist’. In Independent Newspaper. Retrieved from: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/boko-haram-women-niger-latest-bad-blood-report-rape-victims-children-stigma-a6881206.html On 5th April, 2020.
Zenn, J. (2019). Boko Haram Factionalization: Who are Islamic State in West Africa Province(ISWAP) Fighters inNiger and Chad? In Perkins, Brian (Ed.). Terrorism Monitor. Volume Xvii (12). Washington DC: The Jamestown Foundation.
