When fighters last month took the town of Gwoza murdering inhabitants and raising its jihadist flags, a video was released declaring the area was ‘now part of the Islamic Caliphate and Gwoza has nothing to do with Nigeria.’ Intelligence agencies believe that what were once symbolic links between IS and Boko Haram have developed into a practical relationship with the Islamic State offering advice on strategy and tactics. Emboldened by the success of IS and now equipped with armoured vehicles and artillery Boko Haram is beginning to operate more like a conventional army in Borno Adamawa and Yobe states. Since 2009 terrorists have attacked government buildings, bombed churches and killed; but recently entire towns have been captured and bases to control the territory are being established, a move that parallels IS. Christian leaders report tens of thousands of Christians and Muslims fleeing northern Nigeria where towns are being captured, including Michika earlier this week. See: - and - and also