Counter-terrorism, human rights
and the rule of law in Africa
We are now well into the second decade since the 9/11 attacks in 2001 so vividly placed transnational terrorism on the international agenda. The far-sighted response at the time by the UN Security Council was based on the understanding that adherence to rule of law and human rights principles was indispensable to effective long-term counter-terrorist strategies. The main tenet was that in order to preserve our own values in the face of a complex open-ended conflict, and to av
Boko Haram: Framing an Islamist Insurgency
The Nigerian government has been engaged in a narrative struggle with Boko Haram in order to win popular support and end the insurgency. The struggle at the narrative level mirrors the struggle at the combat level, with Nigeria possessing significantly greater opportunities, resources, and allies to win the war against Boko Haram. That the war has not ended nearly five years after it first began, suggests that Boko Haram’s narrative strategy connects with northern population
