Boko Haram leader mocks US over bounty

Defiant Boko Haram leader, Abubakar Shekau, who claimed he was behind the latest terror offensive in the north eastern parts of Nigeria, taunted the United States and its allies in his latest video. In the video that has been released, where he rejects claims that a faction had unseated him, Shekau made a mockery of the bounty the United States had placed on him earlier this year. “I am challenging (US President0 Obama,” Shekau said in the video. He voiced similar challenges to French President Francois Hollande and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “They are no match for me,” he proclaimed. The Boko Haram leader has been declared a global terrorist with the US subsequently offering $7 million for his capture. There were reports a faction of had deposed him. Other reports went to as far as suggesting he had been shot and killed. In a video released on Monday, the elusive leader insisted he was in “good health.” He laid claim to the recent deadly attacks on security forces in the northeast. The video contained footage of what Shekau said were Boko Haram gunmen opening fire on the military in the town of Bama, using heavy weapons mounted on flat-bed trucks. He also referred to fighting in the towns Baga and Gamboru Ngala near the border with Cameroon. Boko Haram gunmen are believed to have also launched deadly attacks against worshippers in Konduga, a village in Borno. The offensive killed 44 people. Another 12 were killed in a nearby village