A CRITICAL DISCOURSE ANALYSIS OF SOCIAL MEDIA TERRORISTS’ THREATS IN NIGERIA

Terrorism is one of the most serious challenges to the global community. Nigeria faces serious threats from Boko Haram, a terrorist group that opposes Western education and considers it bad. This jihadist propaganda is propagated on YouTube, where they display violent past activities and plans for future violent assaults. The study critically examines Boko Haram's dominating ideologies of continual danger, inequity, discrimination, and oppression. The research also looks at the ideological underpinnings of the language used by Boko Haram terrorists to influence people's attitudes and behaviours towards Western education, as well as the implementation of Sharia law in Nigeria, in Boko Haram YouTube broadcasts from 2014 to 2019. Five Boko Haram YouTube broadcasts were studied using van Dijk's critical discourse analysis concept and a qualitative content analytical technique. The study found that Boko Haram's ideology are based on an extreme interpretation of Islam, which includes the following major elements: Islamic fundamentalism, religious exclusivism, political victimisation, and antagonism to modernity.