Haram - Forbidden, but not to Boko Haram.

Haram means sinful & refers to any act forbidden by Allah.
The two types of haram are:
1. Things prohibited because of their essence and harm caused to an individual - Adultery, murder, theft.

2. Things prohibited because of external reasons that are not fundamentally harmful but are associated to something that is prohibited:-

• Ill-gotten wealth obtained through sin. Examples include money earned through cheating, stealing, corruption, murder and Interest or any means that involves harm to another human being. Also, a deal or sale during Friday's prayers.
• It is prohibited in Islam for a Muslim to profit from such haram actions. Any believer who benefits from or lives off wealth obtained through haram is a sinner.
• Prayer in a house taken illegally.

The religious term haram is applied to:

• Actions, such as premarital sex, murder, or getting a tattoo.
• Policies, such as riba.
• Objects, such as al-Masjid al-Haram and al-Masjid al-Nabawi in context as two haram (sacred) mosques.
• Food and drinks, such as pork and alcohol.
• Some ḥalāl objects, foods or actions that are normally halal but under some conditions become haram. For example halal food and drinks at noon-time during Ramadan, or a cow or another halal animal that is not slaughtered in the Islamic way and in the name of Allah 

Having discovered all this I am even more at a loss to understand the actions of Islamic fundamentalists, such as Boko Haram. How do they reconcile & justify their actions in the light of Islamic teaching & Sharia Law? Well, obviously they can't. They are so indoctrinated & far from the teachings of Allah that they simply cannot be called good Muslims.

The abduction of  276 schoolgirls in Chibok in Northern Nigeria is indeed such a "haram" act. It is indefensible under any religious or non religious law. They are children who have  been stolen from their families & friends. We cannot know what terrors they have experienced, but it is certainly harmful to each one of the children & the families involved. The terrorists want other terrorists to be released, so they aim to profit from a haram act which is also prohibited.

Finding these girls will undoubtedly be difficult given the terrain. If & when they are found the harm will be done. They will be traumatised. If there is a God I'm sure he will "reward" the terrorists in ways they cannot envisage & do not expect.