I had to open this thread for the sake of those believing Niger Delta militants should be treated same as Boko Haram.

Militant vs Terrorist
In a war torn world where many devastating incidents have caused the world to break apart so many times, the terms militant and terrorist are two words that have reached the familiarity of common household names. However, while these two terms are being used interchangeably all over the world, the words militant and terrorist are two words that carry very significant connotations of their own which must not be confused for the sake of humanity.
Who is a militant?
A militant is an individual who is aggressive or violent or intensely active usually for a cause in which they believe in. the word militant is derived from the 15th century Latin term “militare” that translates in to “to serve as a soldier” and hence gives the idea of a defensive group who are at odds with an invading group that threaten their independence or their well being. However, the modern definition of the term militant implies an individual who utilizes vigorous and extreme means of achieving an objective that is usually political. However, they may not use physical violence or combat to attain their means.
Who is a terrorist?
A terrorist is an individual who utilizes terror as a means of coercion, using violence as a means of attaining a religious, political or an ideological goal. Terrorists deliberately target civilians or disregard their safety when in battle and usually employ acts of unlawful violence and war in order to reach their targets. While there are no definite definitions for the word terrorism, a terrorist is usually responsible for the destruction of property, heavy bloodshed, crimes against humanity and etc. Some popular terrorist groups that are that have been plaguing the world more recently can be named as the Al-Qaeda and the LTTE who have been responsible for significant bloodshed around the globe.

What is the difference between a terrorist and a militant?
These two words are often used interchangeably whereas it is usually considered as wrong to do so. However, a militant and a terrorist both have their own agendas and mostly, these agendas are political. The difference however lies in the means with which they hope to achieve their desired goal.
Terrorists are thus named because of the fact that they utilize fear for attaining their desired goal. The way in which they instill fear in people or the state is by using armed violence, destructing public property, destroying and killing innocent people and thereby posing as a threat to human lives and the overall wellbeing of a country or a nation. Terrorists often choose civilians as their targets, thus drawing the attention of the authorities towards themselves while they also target government organizations for their attacks. Militants however, do not use physical violence. They are usually seen to be using verbal violence, taking extreme action to achieve a desired goal. Militants do not target civilians as terrorists do and they have no desire of instilling fear in people and gaining their objective through fear. Militants usually rebel against the state and the authorities with the aim of gaining liberation or independence.
However, it is a commonly known fact that a militant will resolve to terrorism if he or she cannot gain his or her objectives through peaceful means. There is proof that most terrorists initiated their operations as militants, gradually making their way in to becoming fully fledged terrorists. It is said that most militants all over the world support terrorist groups with the aim of gaining their support in fulfilling their respective ambitions. Terrorism is regarded as an offence all over the world and is also looked down upon with much disdain.

SUMMARY

Terrorists use terror to obtain their objectives. Militants do not seek to use terror in obtaining their goals.
Terrorists resort to physical violence whereas militants use more verbal violence.
Terrorists usually target civilians and instill fear in them in order to gain the attention of the authorities. Militants do not harm civilians and instead, they choose to rebel against the state.
Militants will not hesitate to resort to terrorism if their needs are not met.

Source:
http://www.wikidifference.com/difference-between-militant-and-terrorist/

Cc: Mynd44

similarities: They both commit crime.

No matter how hard you try to polish the criminal act of militancy, only few people will agree with you on any difference. Both of them are criminals and will be so treated. Maximum penalty must be applicable to curb these ugly trend

op u ar an idiot person nt. obeying the law is a crime so they ar criminals

dungas30:
op u ar an idiot person
nt. obeying the law is a crime so they ar criminals

How dare u insult me

No militants means any indigene of oil producing state

while

terrorist means any Muslim

finish