THE leader of Boko Haram sect, Abubakar Shekau, has released a new video disputing the military’s claim that he was killed or wounded by Nigerian soldiers.
The 39-minute video posted on YouTube showed Shekau, flanked by two gun-wielding Boko Haram members, speaking on the group’s activities.
In the video, Shekau spoke extensively in Arabic and also in Hausa, Kanuri, and English.
In August, the Islamic State, which Shekau had initially pledged allegiance to, announced it had removed him as leader and appointed Abu Musab al-Barnawi as his replacement; a move Shekau rejected.
Al-Barnawi is the son of the late Boko Haram founder, Muhammed Yusuf.
The video, posted on Saturday, is the latest in a series of latest videos by Shekau’s faction of the terror group which activities had caused the death of over 20,000 people, displaced over 1 million children and killed over 600 teachers, according to the United Nations.