Abubakar Shekau

Abu Mohammed Abubakar al-Sheikawi (also known by the alias Darul Akeem wa Zamunda Tawheed, or Darul Tawheed; "the abode of monotheism"; born 1965, 1969 or 1975[1] – 19 May 2021) was a Kanuri terrorist who was the leader of Boko Haram, a Nigerian Islamist militant group.[2][3] He served as deputy leader to the group's founder, Mohammed Yusuf, until Yusuf's execution in 2009. Nigerian authorities believed that Shekau was killed in 2009 during clashes between security forces and Boko Haram until July 2010, when Shekau appeared in a video claiming leadership of the group.[3] He had subsequently been regularly reported dead and was thought to use doubles.[4][5][6] In March 2015, Shekau pledged allegiance to ISIL leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Shekau was a Salafi, until 2016, when he ended his relation to ISIL.[7] On 21 May 2021, an investigation by The Wall Street Journal, backed by reports by Nigerian officials, stated that Shekau had killed himself by detonating a suicide vest during the battle of Sambisa Forest between Boko Haram and Islamic State's West Africa Province.[8] Shekau's rival Abu Musab al-Barnawi later also stated that Shekau had killed himself.[9] In June 2021, his death was confirmed by his surviving loyalists.[10]