ABSTRACT
On the evening of January 30, 2016, more than a hundred Boko Haram militants descended onto the northern Nigerian village of Dalori. Here they proceeded to shoot residents, set homes on fire with screaming children inside and detonated bombs amid terrified, fleeing villagers. At least 85 people were killed and scores more were severely injured. It is self-evident too that the Nigerian government is operating in the traditional counter-terrorism paradigm, specifically in terms of its reliance on counter-insurgency responses since 2009, when Boko Haram's violent campaign began in earnest. This approach witnessed the different Nigerian security forces establishing a Joint Task Force (JTF) to engage in hot pursuit operations against Boko Haram, as well as engaging in raids of suspected Boko Haram hideouts where intelligence points to this. The traditional response to terrorism, however, also provides us with insight into why the Nigerian state has failed to end the carnage of the Islamist militants.
