Ansaru
| Vanguard for the Protection of Muslims in Black Africa (Ansaru) | |
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| Leaders | |
| Dates of operation |
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| Active regions | Northern Nigeria |
| Ideology | Islamic fundamentalist Jihadism |
| Size | 2,000–3,000 (2013) |
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| Allies |
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| Opponents | |
| Battles and wars | Islamist insurgency in the Sahel Nigerian bandit conflict |
| Designated as a terrorist group by | see section |
The Vanguard for the Protection of Muslims in Black Africa (Arabic: جماعة أنصار المسلمين في بلاد السودان Jamāʿatu Anṣāril Muslimīna fī Bilādis Sūdān), better known as Ansaru and less commonly called al-Qaeda in the Lands Beyond the Sahel, is an Islamic fundamentalist Jihadist militant organisation originally based in the northeast of Nigeria. Originally a faction of Boko Haram, the group announced in 2012 that it had pledged allegiance to al-Qaeda and was independent. Despite this, Ansaru and other Boko Haram factions continued to work closely together until the former increasingly declined and stopped its insurgent activities in 2013. The group was revived in 2020, and has been involved in the Nigerian bandit conflict.