( CNN ) -- The State Department on Wednesday designated Nigeria-based Boko Haram and its offshoot Ansaru as `` terrorist organizations , '' legally enabling Washington to take various steps against the groups , their members and their supporters . The two groups join a list of `` Foreign Terrorist Organizations '' that includes al Qaeda , Hamas , the Real Irish Republican Army and many others . Being so named means the United States can freeze such organizations ' assets , impose travel bans on their known members and affiliates , and prohibit Americans from offering material support . U.S. officials told CNN Tuesday this move was coming against both organizations , who have been in the news in recent years for various attacks . The United States says Boko Haram has killed thousands since 2009 . Human rights groups put the figure at more than 3,000 . Boko Haram , which means `` Western education is sacrilege '' in the Hausa-Fulani language , has launched a self-described `` war on Christians '' and seeks to impose a strict version of Sharia law across northeastern Nigeria , if not the entire country . It has attacked various targets in the West African nation since its formation in the late 1990s , according to the U.S. National Counterterrorism Center . This includes killing and kidnapping Westerners , and bombing schools , churches and mosques , the center said . In August , militants allegedly went into a mosque in Borno state and killed 44 worshipers . The group released a video boasting it was growing stronger and had launched attacks in Benisheikh in September that the State Department said left 160 civilians dead , many of them Muslim women and children . In recent months , it has stepped up attacks against students at English-language schools . In September , the State Department said Boko Haram attacked an agricultural school , killing 50 students in their dorm as they slept . Earlier this month , the United Nations warned that the extremist group could be found guilty of crimes against humanity after it launched a brutal attack on a wedding party that killed more than 30 people . The U.N. refugee agencies estimates more than 8,000 people in Nigeria have fled into neighboring Cameroon to escape the escalating violence and another 5,000 have become internally displaced . While the group 's principal focus is Nigeria , the United States cites links to the al Qaeda affiliate in West Africa , and extremist groups in Mali . Gen. Carter Ham , then the commander of U.S. Africa Command , has warned Congress that Boko Haram elements `` aspire to a broader regional level of attacks , '' including against United States and European interests . A Boko Haram suicide attack on the United Nations building two years ago in the Nigerian capital of Abuja killed at least 25 people . In June 2012 , the State Department added several of the group 's members to a terrorist blacklist , including its new leader Abubakar Shekau , who has a $ 7 million bounty on his head . As to Ansaru , it has gone after Nigerian military and Western targets , according to the State Department . This includes a November 2012 raid on a police station in Abuja that killed Nigerian police officers and sprung free several terrorists . The State Department also blames Ansaru for kidnapping foreigners who live and work in the African nation plus attacking a convoy of Nigerian peacekeepers . The decision to designate Boko Haram and Ansaru as terrorist organizations followed a robust debate . The administration faced intense pressure from Congress and some officials to list the groups , given their history of violence . Other officials and experts warned they did not pose a threat to the United States , adding that designating them as terrorist organizations could make Washington more of a target . And some officials argued the Nigerian government could interpret the decision as an American green light to continue its heavy-handed crackdown on the organization . Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan stepped up a military campaign against the group six months ago , declaring a six-month state of emergency in May in the three northeastern states worst hit by the violence . Recent Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch reports accused the Nigerian military of human rights abuses and violations when conducting operations against the group . The U.N. said it is investigating the claims . The State Department hinted at this issue in its announcement designating Boko Haram and Ansaru as terrorist groups . `` All of our assistance to Nigeria stresses the importance of protecting civilians and ensuring that human rights are respected , '' the State Department said . `` That assistance and these designations demonstrate U.S. support for the Nigerian people 's fight against Boko Haram and Ansaru . ''
Boko Haram , Ansaru designated as terrorist organizations by the U.S. That means the U.S. can freeze assets , restrict travel , go after backers . Boko Haram is blamed for attacks in Nigeria , may have bigger aspirations . Ansaru is an offshoot of Boko Haram that 's accused of kidnappings , more .