INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL LAW AND THE BOKO HARAM INSURGENCY: THE DUAL STATUS OF FEMALE SUICIDE BOMBERS

Abstract

Caught between fear and blame, the women used as suicide bombers by Boko Haram raise some of the most painful questions in international criminal law. This article explores their dual status as both victims and perpetrators in the Boko Haram insurgency. It first places Boko Haram’s actions—mass abductions, repeated suicide attacks, and targeted assaults on schools, especially girls’ schools—within the legal framework of crimes against humanity under the Rome Statute. The article then examines how Boko Haram’s gendered beliefs and discriminatory practices turn women and girls into tools of war. It shows how forced recruitment, sexual violence, and the use of female person‑borne improvised explosive devices (PBIEDs) amount to gender-based persecution and serious violations of basic human rights. Using case law from the ICC and earlier international tribunals, it analyses key issues of agency, coercion, and responsibility, and explains how extreme pressure and threats can weaken or remove the required intent (mens rea) for international crimes. Finally, the article considers Nigeria’s duties as a State Party to the Rome Statute and reviews the proposed Crime against Humanity, War Crimes, Genocide and Related Offences Bill. It recommends clearer rules for deradicalization centres, gender-sensitive rehabilitation programmes, wider access to reparations, and specialist training for judges, prosecutors, and security forces. Overall, the article argues that any fair response must recognise the complex position of female PBIEDs as both harmed and harming, while still promoting accountability, gender justice, and safe reintegration into society.