Abubakar Shekau, the leader of Nigeria's Boko Haram extremist group, was once rejected by ISIS for being too radical.
Shekau, who reportedly killed himself during a gunfight, according to West Africa's ISIS affiliate, took the reins of Boko Haram in 2010 after its founder Mohammed Yusuf died in police custody.
The terrorist, whose age was unknown, leapt to international notoriety in 2014 with the abduction of 276 schoolgirls in the remote town of Chibok, sparking the #BringBackOurGirls movement.
Soon after, the UN Security Council sanctioned the group and the United States declared Shekau a "global terrorist".
Born in Nigeria's northern Yobe state, Shekau was an ethnic Kanuri whose parents were poor farmers who immigrated from neighbouring Niger.
After embracing hardline religious ideology, the young Shekau became a local preacher. In 1990, he moved to the Borno state capital Maiduguri.
"He was an easy-going fellow who would exchange banter with people in the neighbourhood. He was popular... as a local theology student," said Grema Kawudima, from the Mafoni area of the city, in a September 2012 interview.
According to another local, Butari Gwoni, Shekau married a teacher's daughter, but she died in childbirth, setting the stage for his drift to radical ideology, according to some.
In a widely cited 2012 quote from one of his first propaganda videos, Shekau said: "I enjoy killing... the way I enjoy slaughtering chickens and rams."
Shekau began his attempt at becoming a theologian when he enrolled at the Borno state College of Legal and Islamic Studies.
There he met Mamman Nur, who would later mastermind the August 2011 bombing of the UN offices in the capital Abuja, which killed 26 people. Nur introduced Shekau to Yusuf, Boko Haram's founder.
"He [Shekau] was a simple, carefree fellow at the beginning," said Kayam Bulama, a student at the same time.
"But soon after Mamman Nur linked him up with Mohammed Yusuf, he began to be abrasive and radical, shunning other students and keeping company of his fellow sect members."
Yusuf was killed in 2009 during a military crackdown on the group that left about 800 people dead. The group went underground briefly afterwards, until Shekau took control.
Under Shekau's leadership, Boko Haram turned large swathes of Nigeria's north-east into a no-go territory, proclaiming a "caliphate" in the Borno town of Gwoza in 2014.
A major offensive in 2015 by Nigerian troops backed by soldiers from Cameroon, Chad and Niger drove the terrorists from most of the area that they had once controlled.
Despite ongoing military operations against Boko Haram, the group has shown resilience and continues to stage bold attacks.
In December, it claimed responsibility for slaughtering 76 farmers outside Maiduguri.
Last month, Boko Haram militants in several trucks fitted with machine guns and on motorcycles stormed parts of Maiduguri, before they were repelled by security forces.
In his propaganda, Shekau often appears unhinged, with wild-eyed rantings that celebrate acts of horrific violence.
But many disagree with the view that he suffered from a mental illness.
"He is obviously clever for being able to be a leader for so long," Jacob Zenn, a researcher at the Washington-based Jamestown Foundation, told AFP.
He is mercurial, subject to quick temper, extreme, and stubborn
Jacob Zenn, researcher at Jamestown Foundation
"He is mercurial, subject to quick temper, extreme, and stubborn," said Mr Zenn. For more than 10 years, "he has not changed, he is consistent, unwilling to compromise".
His unwillingness to comprise is what led to a split within Boko Haram.
Shekau encouraged brutal tactics, including the use of women and children suicide bombers, something other militant groups disapproved of, although the same groups, linked to ISIS, frequently advocated suicide attacks using adult bombers.
"He considered Muslim civilians who were not loyal to be legitimate targets," Crisis Group researcher Vincent Foucher wrote in a report.
"He also antagonised many other commanders," he added, "with what they saw as his hoarding of cash and weapons and his refusal to share this bounty with those he did not like or trust."
In 2016, senior Boko Haram commanders who disagreed with Shekau's tactics deserted the group's stronghold in Sambisa forest and headed west towards the Alagarno forest.
A few months later, the leader of their faction, Habib Yusuf, a son of Mohamed Yusuf, was officially recognised leader of ISIS' West African affiliate.
ISIS in West Africa has since gone through several internal changes, but is now the dominant threat for the Nigerian army.
In audio obtained by AFP from the same source who conveyed previous messages from the group, a voice resembling that of the West African ISIS leader Abu Musab Al Barnawi said Shekau died after being hunted down for five days by its fighters.
"Shekau preferred to be humiliated in the hereafter to getting humiliated on Earth. He killed himself instantly by detonating an explosive," said the voice speaking in the Kanuri language.
Boko Haram has not yet officially commented on the death of their leader while the Nigerian army said it was investigating the claim.
BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, last 16, first leg
Ajax v Real Madrid, midnight (Thursday), BeIN Sports
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Five healthy carbs and how to eat them
Brown rice: consume an amount that fits in the palm of your hand
Non-starchy vegetables, such as broccoli: consume raw or at low temperatures, and don’t reheat
Oatmeal: look out for pure whole oat grains or kernels, which are locally grown and packaged; avoid those that have travelled from afar
Fruit: a medium bowl a day and no more, and never fruit juices
Lentils and lentil pasta: soak these well and cook them at a low temperature; refrain from eating highly processed pasta variants
Courtesy Roma Megchiani, functional nutritionist at Dubai’s 77 Veggie Boutique
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
Polarised public
31% in UK say BBC is biased to left-wing views
19% in UK say BBC is biased to right-wing views
19% in UK say BBC is not biased at all
Source: YouGov
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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CHELSEA SQUAD
Arrizabalaga, Bettinelli, Rudiger, Christensen, Silva, Chalobah, Sarr, Azpilicueta, James, Kenedy, Alonso, Jorginho, Kante, Kovacic, Saul, Barkley, Ziyech, Pulisic, Mount, Hudson-Odoi, Werner, Havertz, Lukaku.
Essentials
The flights
Emirates, Etihad and Malaysia Airlines all fly direct from the UAE to Kuala Lumpur and on to Penang from about Dh2,300 return, including taxes.
Where to stay
In Kuala Lumpur, Element is a recently opened, futuristic hotel high up in a Norman Foster-designed skyscraper. Rooms cost from Dh400 per night, including taxes. Hotel Stripes, also in KL, is a great value design hotel, with an infinity rooftop pool. Rooms cost from Dh310, including taxes.
In Penang, Ren i Tang is a boutique b&b in what was once an ancient Chinese Medicine Hall in the centre of Little India. Rooms cost from Dh220, including taxes.
23 Love Lane in Penang is a luxury boutique heritage hotel in a converted mansion, with private tropical gardens. Rooms cost from Dh400, including taxes.
In Langkawi, Temple Tree is a unique architectural villa hotel consisting of antique houses from all across Malaysia. Rooms cost from Dh350, including taxes.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Barcelona v Liverpool, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE).
Second leg
Liverpool v Barcelona, Tuesday, May 7, 11pm
Games on BeIN Sports
Section 375
Cast: Akshaye Khanna, Richa Chadha, Meera Chopra & Rahul Bhat
Director: Ajay Bahl
Producers: Kumar Mangat Pathak, Abhishek Pathak & SCIPL
Rating: 3.5/5
How has net migration to UK changed?
The figure was broadly flat immediately before the Covid-19 pandemic, standing at 216,000 in the year to June 2018 and 224,000 in the year to June 2019.
It then dropped to an estimated 111,000 in the year to June 2020 when restrictions introduced during the pandemic limited travel and movement.
The total rose to 254,000 in the year to June 2021, followed by steep jumps to 634,000 in the year to June 2022 and 906,000 in the year to June 2023.
The latest available figure of 728,000 for the 12 months to June 2024 suggests levels are starting to decrease.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
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SPEC%20SHEET
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Tamkeen's offering
- Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
- Option 2: 50% across three years
- Option 3: 30% across five years
Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015
- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany
- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people
- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed
- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest
- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France
