Islamic State appears to be deadliest of the terrorist organizations in the world, but a new report by the Institute of Economics & Peace showed that Boko Haram surpasses ISIS in militant carnage.
The study, called the 2015 Global Terrorism Index, states that Boko Haram, based in Nigeria, killed 6,644 people in 2014, while ISIS claimed 6,073 lives during the same year.
Combined together, Boko Haram and Islamic State were responsible for about half of all terrorist-related deaths.
The third deadliest group was Taliban, which killed 3,477 people in militant attacks, which was a 38 percent rise in the group-sponsored massacres from 2013.
This week's bombings in the Yola and Kano cities of Nigeria claimed over 30 lives and injured hundreds others are suspected to have been carried out by Boko Haram.
Boko Haram has increased its activities in the last two years, and last year it kidnapped over 200 schoolgirls. The number of deaths in Nigeria increased by about 300 percent from 2013 to 2014. However, ISIS carried out 1,071 attacks in 2014, which were far more than Boko Haram's 453. This yet implies that Boko Haram's activities claimed more lives per attack than ISIS.
Boko Haram pledged allegiance to ISIS this year, and ISIS is said to have advised Boko Haram to improve killing strategies and to attract media attention.
There is little evidence of Boko Haram taking financial support from ISIS, and no Islamic State cell is thought to be operational in Nigeria.
The study also points out several differences between Nigeria-based Boko Haram and ISIS operating from the Middle East.
"Terrorist activity in Nigeria has more in common with the tactics of organized crime and gangs, focusing more on armed assaults using firearms and knives than on the bombings of other large terrorist groups," the report says.
"In Nigeria, private citizens are overwhelmingly targeted, most often with firearms resulting in very high levels of deaths per attack."
Till now, Boko Haram mostly used firearms, but resorted to suicide bombings since last year, implying a change in strategies. ISIS, on the other hand use explosives more frequently.
"Whilst previously the use of suicide attacks by Boko Haram was rare, in 2014 they were responsible for 31 suicide attacks. ... No other group in Nigeria conducted suicide attacks in 2014."
Both organizations have captured territories in the base regions of their operation, where they rule by caliphates. But Boko Haram is reported to have seceded some ground during the last year. The organization is also active in the neighboring countries of Chad, Niger, and Cameroon.
President Muhammadu Buhari took office in May this year, and has launched intense military operations to push back Boko Haram, which have been successful and have led to significant victories against the group.
The Economics & Peace Institute released the third Global Terrorism Index this year based on a research conducted at the University of Maryland, with an aim to track terrorist activities across the world.
