In five years, HumAngle has become a powerhouse for truth seekers, journalists, and storytellers who dare to ask the hard questions. As we mark our anniversary, here is how far we have come and how far we are willing to go. #HumAngleAt5

What influenced Abdussamad to join the terror group remains unclear, but he graduated from secondary school in 2015, while security sources say he joined the group the following year, when he was about 16 or 17. His age suggests he may have been recruited as a child soldier. HumAngle has reported on how terrorists use food and other basic amenities to lure young boys into their ranks. humanglemedia.com/former-cla…

They said he was gentle, shy, and quiet in secondary school and posed no threat at the time. “When I saw the news, I couldn’t recognise his face. I had to read our school magazine before I realised it was actually him. We weren’t really close,” the classmate said. “But from what I knew of him back then, he was a cool, gentle, and shy type, and we were about the same age.” humanglemedia.com/former-cla…

Nigerian government records reveal very few details about his person. The Nigeria Sanctions Committee identifies him simply as a national from the Okene Local Government Area (LGA) in Kogi State. He was a young man like many others, but his ideology and beliefs differed. One former classmate revealed that even as a student, Abdussamad listened to radical jihadi songs. Although not all such songs are radical in form, those that are have been proven to serve as an alternative voice for extremists or fundamentalists due to their short and easy-to-memorise sentences, serving as a form of psychological warfare. “We were just kids in 2011-2014 when this idiot liked listening to jihad songs,” the former classmate added. humanglemedia.com/former-cla…

Abdussamad became a key ISWAP figure after the secret service operatives nabbed his immediate superior, Abu Ikirimah, also known as Abu Uwais, in 2023. HumAngle traced his path from a quiet schoolboy in Kogi State to a senior ISWAP commander. Drawing on government records, security accounts, and interviews with former classmates, we examine his rise through the terror group and how extremists exploit local knowledge and relationships to establish footholds in new territories. humanglemedia.com/former-cla…

From a quiet schoolboy in Kogi State to a senior #ISWAP commander, HumAngle traced the path of Abdussamad Ohida, also known as Anwar, who died in October during a joint security operation in Owo Forest, Ondo, southwestern Nigeria. admin.humanglemedia.com/form…

Former Classmates Describe Killed ISWAP Commander as Unassuming admin.humanglemedia.com/form…

HumAngle's newsroom is filled with journalists who go to great lengths to document and bring you the truth, from reporters who have spent nights in open fields to those who have lowered themselves into holes. Support their efforts and a week of reporting today: support.humanglemedia.com

HumAngle cartoon of the week by Jibrin Akila Inspiration: Highway Terrorists Threaten Food Lifeline in Northeastern Nigeria humanglemedia.com/highway-te…

In 2015, the Armsgate scandal, also known as the Dasukigate scandal, happened, and soldiers on the front lines paid the price. If arms can be bought in Nigeria without advertising, open bidding, and regulations, how is accountability maintained? Take a look: youtube.com/watch?v=vW4uORou…

Between 2021 and 2025, Nigeria was the biggest arms importer in sub-Saharan Africa, yet a report shows that troops fighting Boko Haram faced shortages. #HumAngleIndex breaks down how Nigeria acquires weapons and who controls the process: youtube.com/watch?v=vW4uORou…

The goal is simple: impactful journalism. HumAngle is determined to tell those challenging and underreported stories, with the aim of helping the people impacted by these conflicts find the safety and security they deserve. Donate to us here: support.humanglemedia.com/

Under the Public Procurement Act, most government procurement requires an advert, an open bid, and a regulator. For weapons, the act applies only if the President says it should. So what happens when money is released to buy arms? We break this down: youtube.com/watch?v=vW4uORou…

In times of conflict and crisis, accurate reporting becomes a lifeline. Help us keep you informed with facts you can trust. Donate to HumAngle here: support.humanglemedia.com/

Between 2021 and 2025, Nigeria was the biggest arms importer in sub-Saharan Africa. Yet, under the Public Procurement Act, weapons procurement is exempt from oversight. How does Nigeria buy its arms, and who controls the process? #HumAngleIndex breaks this down:youtube.com/watch?v=vW4uORou…

Days after his vehicle was intercepted by terrorists, Alkali went back to retrieve what was left – a blackened frame, which he sold to a panel beater for ₦150,000 in Maiduguri. His boss promised another truck. Nearly a year on, it has not come. “Things must have been tough on him as well,” he said. humanglemedia.com/highway-te…

Kachalla said informants are central to this. They sit in the same towns and motor parks the drivers pass through. Some are drivers themselves; others are members of transport associations. They report a vehicle’s colour, arrival time, destination, and cargo before it arrives. Neither Alkali nor the traders who spoke for this story could say for certain whether they had ever been watched this way. humanglemedia.com/highway-te…

What happens to the food that is seized does not end with the terrorists who took it. Kachalla said the seized items, known as faihu, are shared, in part or in whole, with communities near the group’s territory. “When the commander is informed of a particular community with which the Daula has a good relationship, and whose youths are recruited or can be potentially recruited,” Kachalla said, “he would instruct a portion of the faihu be given to that community.” Sometimes, the commander gives everything away. He said there is no fixed formula. It is a loyalty transaction, dressed in scripture. humanglemedia.com/highway-te…