- Armed conflicts have wreaked havoc across the Sahel region for most of the past decade.
- Analysts point out that armed groups operating in the landlocked Sahel countries are trying to push their way into the coastal states of West Africa.
- A number of West African coastal states have faced a growing number of border attacks, raising fears over the expansion of armed groups affiliated with ISIL (ISIS) and al-Qaeda in the region.
Armed conflicts have wreaked havoc across the Sahel region for most of the past decade. Analysts point out that armed groups operating in the landlocked Sahel countries are trying to push their way into the coastal states of West Africa. A number of West African coastal states have faced a growing number of border attacks, raising fears over the expansion of armed groups affiliated with ISIL (ISIS) and al-Qaeda in the region. The head of France’s foreign intelligence service Bernard Emie said al-Qaeda-linked fighters were working on plans to extend their attacks in the Gulf of Guinea, particularly in Benin and Ivory Coast.
President of Benin, Patrice Talon pledged to be more vigilant after the al-Qaeda-linked Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal- Muslimin (JNIM) recently attacked a military post in the northern Atacora region, near the border with Burkina Faso and killed and wounded Benin military officials. Several members of Ivory Coast’s security forces have lost their lives by cross-border assaults. Togo also has been on a high alert against possible assaults by terror groups. Security forces in Togo reported that they repulsed an attack last November by armed men who came through its northern border with Burkina Faso.Play Video
Security experts are of the view that infiltrating coastal countries offered several advantages for the armed groups in Burkina Faso and Mali. They created new supply lines for food and equipment as well as new sources of income from banditry. These coastal countries also serve as supply or transit zones, for motorcycles, spare parts, fertilizers and so on. This strategy of the militant group of attacking also prevents the concentration of military force and large-scale military operation of West African states and their Western partners. Political analysts say that the coastal states will remain vulnerable if the issue is viewed only as a security problem, ignoring longstanding governance or political issues without seeking political solutions to the regional problem.
