A Christian in Yobe State, Nigeria, Habil Adamu, Was Shot in the Head With AK47 by Boko Haram Terrorists Because He Refused to Reeject Christ

The state of Yobe is west of Borno state on the Northeast geopolitical zone of Nigeria. Though situated in the so-called Sharia territory of the Far North, the indigenous ethnic nationalities inhabiting the southern part of Yobe state, like their neighbors in the Middle Belt territory, have effectively resisted Islamization for centuries. The government is controlled and dominated by majority Muslims, but non-Muslims were mostly ignored and, of course, grossly marginalized. In recent decades, Christian evangelism started to gain ground in the northern parts of the Middle Belt, which includes Southern Yobe. Institutions for Western education and Christian churches began to appear in the Northeast zone as an increasing number of indigenous inhabitants actively sought the means to improve their lot by opting for modernity. The Secondary School in Dapchi, where Boko Haram terrorists kidnapped the 14-year-old Leah Sharibu, is situated in the central part of Yobe state. The narrator in this video, Habil Adamu, lives in Sothern Yobe.

Christian converts tend to stick out like a sour thumb in the eyes of the jihadist Boko Haram – the third deadliest terrorist group in the world – because the former are likely to be dressed differently from the local Muslims and do congregate in churches and schools on a routine basis. The terrorists, therefore, know where to find their Christian victims in a Yobe state. Because of a total breakdown of government-provided security in most parts of Northeast Nigeria, the terrorists are emboldened to go into the communities and conduct house-to-house searches to ferret out their Christian victims. That’s precisely what happened to Habil.

Four men armed with AK47 rifles entered Mr. Adamu’s residence and demanded to know why he was still not among the Muslim converts as many in his neighborhood. The brave Christian did not respond the way his interrogators anticipated when he professed his belief in Christ. Asked if he would rather die for his faith or convert to Islam, Habil answered in the affirmative. He was instantly shot at the head through his left nostril. He fell on the floor and was left in a pool of blood motionless. Having meted the ultimate punishment to the “infidel”, the Boko Haram jihadists left their victim’s presumed lifeless body and moved on.

Habil’s blown-out left face bled for nine hours until the bleeding stopped by itself. The regional hospital facility in Potiskum, Southern Yobe, was ill-equipped to handle the sort of injuries sustained by Mr. Adamu. He had to be transferred elsewhere for his devastating injuries to be managed. He testified of the miraculous healing of his mutilating facial wounds, which were eventually successfully repaired without the use of bone, muscle and skin grafts as initially projected by the treating doctors.

Mr. Habil Adamu got an opportunity to make a presentation before the US Congressional Sub-committee conducting a hearing on massive infringements of the International Religious Freedom Act in the Middle Belt territory of Nigeria. In June and July 2019, a contingent visiting the US from Nigeria was allowed to testify before the Commissioner Brownback’s on International Religious Freedom Roundtable at the Dirksen Senate Building, Capitol Hill, Washington, DC. Mrs. Rebecca Sharibu, Leah Sharibu’s mother, was accompanied by Christian surviving terror victims from Southern Kaduna and Benue states to visit some senators’ offices to plead for her daughter’s release from the cold clutches of the Boko Haram.  Former US Congressman Frank R. Wolf, who sponsored the International religious freedom Act 1998, took a personal interest in assuring that the legislative and executive might of the US government is brought to bear on the likes of Boko Haram and those who enable the terrorist entity in the relentless persecution of Christians in Nigeria.

Former US Congressman Frank R. Wolf (Republican) of Virginia (center) chats with the delegate from Nigeria to solicit the assistance of official Washington for the immediate release of kidnapped Leah Sharibu and to stop the genocide on Christians by Islamist jihadists.

The 2nd annual International Religious Freedom Roundtable organized by the US State Department in Washington, DC in July 2019 provided the unique opportunity for the Lower Niger Congress (LNC) and other self-determination agonists for Nigeria to articulate and collate priority matters that require the immediate attention of the UG government. The requests and recommendations from the Nigerian side event held at the Marvin Center, George Washington University campus, were included in the final report compiled after the weeklong event.

It is widely believed in Washington, DC circles that the outcome of the 2019 International Religious Freedom Roundtable was instrumental in making President Donald Trump to issue the Executive Order on International religious Freedom of June 2, 2020. This order tightens the pressure and oversight on the murderous Islamist groups, such as Boko Haram and their enablers in Nigeria and elsewhere in the Lake Chad Basin.