A senior US army general, Thomas Waldhauser, has said the Boko Haram terrorist group have fractured internally, with a big group splitting from its leader, Abubakar Shekau.

The general said the split is because of Shekau’s failure to adhere to directives from the Islamic State, IS.

General Waldhauser, who is the nominee to lead the US military’s Africa Command, suggested that the internal division was illustrative of the fact that there’s a limit to IS’s influence over Boko Haram despite the pledge of allegiance by Boko Haram last year.

Waldhauser revealed this during his nomination hearing before the US Senate Armed Forces Committee.

He said Shekau has not fallen in line with Islamic State’s instructions including  ignoring calls for Boko Haram to stop using children as suicide bombers.

“He’s been told by ISIL to stop doing that, but he has not done so and that’s one of the reasons why this splinter group has broken off,” he said.

He added that the IS were trying to re-unite the two factions.

Waldhauser acknowledged that the IS has not been of much financial help to the Boko Haram but perhaps in tradecraft and trading, adding that he is more concerned with the splinter group which might act more in concert with the Islamic State.

“What concerns me is the breakoff group of Boko Haram who wants to be more IS-like, and consequently start, like the IS, to target western interests.