The University of Maiduguri in Borno state in Nigeria has started building a trench along its eastern perimeter to thwart attacks from the jihadist group Boko Haram. The announcement followed an attack on the university by suicide bombers on Sunday, June 25, which occurred shortly before other suicide bombers detonated their explosives just outside the city. Sixteen people, including the bombers, were killed in the attacks.
Borno state governor Kashim Shettima has released 50 million naira [€135,543] to finance the building work. It is hoped that the 27km-long trench will stop militants from driving into the university campus, and will also make it more difficult for them to enter on foot.
Because it was the school holidays, there were no students on campus when the most recent attack took place. However, this isn’t the first time that the extremist group Boko Haram – whose Hausa name roughly translates to "Western education is forbidden" – has carried out violent attacks on the university.
Borno state governor Kashim Shettima has released 50 million naira [€135,543] to finance the building work. It is hoped that the 27km-long trench will stop militants from driving into the university campus, and will also make it more difficult for them to enter on foot.
Because it was the school holidays, there were no students on campus when the most recent attack took place. However, this isn’t the first time that the extremist group Boko Haram – whose Hausa name roughly translates to "Western education is forbidden" – has carried out violent attacks on the university.
“It just makes Boko Haram look for alternatives”
Boko Haram was first formed in Maiduguri in 2002 and the city has been a frequent target of the group’s attacks. Trenches are already used in Maiduguri as one type of barrier against Boko Haram, but haven’t been built at the university, which has a perimeter wall instead. The western side of the campus, which faces towards the centre of town, is well guarded by security, but the eastern side has traditionally been easier to breach. The trench is meant to provide one more layer of protection for an institution that has been repeatedly targeted by the jihadist group.
One of our Observers in Maiduguri, who did not want to be named, is not convinced that this measure will be truly efficient:
One of our Observers in Maiduguri, who did not want to be named, is not convinced that this measure will be truly efficient:
Digging trenches here and there really doesn't end the bombings. It merely suspends it. It just makes Boko Haram look for alternatives. When you enclose a section of a town it's only a matter of time before they look for another route... So why don't we cover all possible angles, without giving them an option? Why is it so difficult to end this mayhem?
At least 20,000 people have been killed by the group since it began its full-on insurgency against the Nigerian government in 2009. Many more have been displaced. In April 2014, about 276 schoolgirls were kidnapped from a girls secondary school in Chibok, which is south of Maiduguri. This one incident drew international attention, but the insurgency marches on.
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