A repentant Boko Haram member has admitted to killing over 100 people while he was a member of the rebel organization.
In a video posted on X by Danish blogger Jone Raw and confirmed by ENigeria Newspaper, the former fighter made this admission while interacting with the foreign vlogger at a rehabilitation camp with other Boko Haram repentants.
Speaking through an interpreter in the video, the remorseful Boko Haram figure claimed to have killed several people while working in the woods.
“I have killed over 100 people,” he admitted.
He clarified that he joined the organization at a very young age and that older members coerced him into engaging in violent actions.
According to the former combatant, the majority of the murders took place in isolated locations. He further explained that members of the organization were frequently told to target villages, women and young people.
While only one them admitted to this, the rest of them disclosed they had nothing in mind to tell the interviewer and that he does appeal to them as someone whom they should relay details to.
The blogger himself expressed disatisfaction on how it is unacceptable that the government gives so much support to people who have killed innocent people over the years.
“What You’re Seeing In This Video Are Repentant And Some Active Boko Haram Terrorists Gearing Up To Fight Alongside The Nigerian Military. How Can Terrorists Who Have K!lled Thousands Of Nigerians, Soldiers, Brigadier General’s And Displaced Millions Be Given This Much Freedom And Even Be Armed By The Nigerian Military”, he tweeted.
Recall that a Sahara Reporter exclusive oncve revealed that the Borno State Government has invested over ₦7.7 billion in the rehabilitation and livelihood support of “repentant” Boko Haram members over a 21-month period as of March 2026, amid rising controversy.
The spending, part of a Disarmament, Demobilization, and Reintegration (DDR) program, totaled ₦2.6 billion in the first nine months of 2025 alone, while the state faces persistent attacks.
Boko Haram over the years
Founded in Nigeria in 2002, Boko Haram has grown from a tiny extremist sect to a violent, dispersed insurgent force that is causing significant instability in the region. Around 2009, it changed from sectarian riots to widespread, deadly attacks. The founding faction and the ISIS-affiliated ISWAP are now its two primary factions.
Since its start in 2009, Boko Haram’s insurgency has killed over 40,000 people in Nigeria, including over 300,000 children. Over 2.3 million people have been displaced by the conflict, with the northeast seeing the majority of the violence. Some of their strategies include suicide bombings, mass kidnappings, rape, torture, forced marriages, recruiting child soldiers, attacks on government buildings, religious and traditional leaders, education, and civilians.
More than 2,000 children have been kidnapped or abducted since 2014, mostly in large-scale kidnappings that target schools. Numerous cases include local bandits and armed extremist organizations like ISWAP and Boko Haram, who frequently use kidnappings to recruit minors or demand ransom. At least 580 individuals, mostly women and girls, were abducted in multiple states in 2024 alone.
