During 2023, the African continent witnessed a historic increase in terrorist operations, with nearly half of the terrorist acts worldwide occurring there, according to the United Nations counterterrorism organization. The U.S. Department of Defense, the Pentagon, stated that approximately 4,000 people were killed in Africa during 2023 due to terrorist attacks, marking an increase of around 19 percent compared to 2022, where the total number rose from 19,000 to 23,000 individuals. The deaths resulting from extremist violence in Africa surged significantly in the past year, reaching a “record level of deadly violence.” These alarming results come despite efforts by the United States, the European Union, and several other countries worldwide to contain the phenomenon. Terrorist organizations in Africa carried out a total of 361 terrorist operations, resulting in 3,360 casualties, 913 injuries, and the abduction of 382 people, in addition to displacing and causing the displacement of thousands from their homes.
East Africa and the Horn of Africa region ranked first for terrorist operations in 2023, with 140 terrorist acts, followed by the Sahel and region with 121 terrorist attacks, then West Africa with 60 terrorist operations, while Central Africa ranked fourth with 40 terrorist acts. In terms of casualties, the Sahel region topped the list with 1,393 fatalities, followed by East Africa with 1,038 fatalities, then Central Africa in third place with 471 deaths, while West Africa ranked fourth with 458 deaths. Burkina Faso topped the list of countries most affected by terrorist operations, as the country in the Sahel region experienced 67 terrorist attacks, resulting in 955 fatalities, indicating the bloody nature of the attacks despite their relatively low frequency compared to Somalia, where terrorist attacks decreased from 70 in 2022 to 67 in 2023, but death rates increased from 594 deaths in 2022 to 955 deaths in 2023. Interestingly, despite Somalia’s dominance in the operational scene with 109 terrorist acts ranging from assassinations to bombings and suicide operations, it ranked second in terms of the number of attack victims with 929 casualties.
A new report has revealed that terrorism-related deaths in Africa have increased by over 100,000 percent during the U.S. intervention in the “war on terror,” contradicting claims by the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) that it “thwarts terrorist threats on the continent and enhances security and stability.” U.S. special operations forces were first deployed to Somalia in 2002, followed by military aid, advisors, and private contractors. After more than 20 years, U.S. forces continue counterterrorism operations there, particularly against the militant group al-Shabaab. These findings are particularly damning for the Sahel region. In 2002 and 2003, the State Department recorded only nine terrorist attacks in Africa. Today, Sahel countries in West Africa suffer from terrorist groups that have grown, evolved, fragmented, and reformed themselves. Deaths in the Sahel region have tripled since 2020, with Sahel deaths accounting for 50% of all reported militant-related deaths in the continent in 2023.
According to UN estimates, terrorist activities pose increasing humanitarian challenges in Burkina Faso, where approximately 4.7 million people require humanitarian assistance, and over two million have been internally displaced, along with 8.8 million in Mali. About 43% of terrorism-related deaths worldwide are located in the African Sahel region. The UN Assistant Secretary-General for African Affairs warned the Security Council of the worsening humanitarian situation due to widespread attacks against civilian targets, resource competition, and control enforcement.
In an attempt to counter terrorism in Africa, the United States has delivered dozens of motorcycles and cars to the transitional government of Burkina Faso to assist in the fight against terrorist groups in the north and east of the country, which has been plagued by terrorist attacks since 2015. Due to the security crisis in Burkina Faso, the military took control three years ago and declared a state of emergency. The military rulers of Burkina Faso turned to purchasing Russian weapons and approached Moscow, resulting in a complete rupture with France, the former colonial power, which opposed the new rulers’ direction. This scenario has been repeated in neighboring Mali and Niger. Terrorism in Africa spreads across its center and west, amid a demographically diverse population, contributing to the failure of alliances led by France and involving U.S. intervention to defeat terrorism in Niger, Chad, Nigeria, and Mali.
France’s role in Africa in recent years in the fight against terrorism has been shrouded in mystery, especially following President Emmanuel Macron’s announcement of the official end of Operation Barkhane in November 2022. This operation, which began in 2014 in the Sahel region, covered five African countries: Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, and Chad, and involved around 4,800 French troops. Among France’s operations in the African Sahel was “Sangaris,” launched in the Central African Republic in 2013 during a sectarian crisis. Other notable operations include “Bouali,” preceding “Sangaris,” and “Epervier” in Chad in February 1986, in response to the conflict between Libya and Chad. Notably, Operation Epervier served as a starting point for larger French operations in the African Sahel, evolving through Operation Serval to eventually become Operation Barkhane, the largest of them all.
The decision to withdraw French forces from Africa follows a series of military coups in several countries, starting with Mali in 2020 and 2021, then Guinea in September 2021, Burkina Faso in January and September 2022, and finally Niger when President Mohamed Bazoum, a close ally of Paris, was ousted last July. Paris’s withdrawal of its forces from Niger amid a wave of anti-French sentiment may serve as a warning to the United States and its plans in the volatile region. Washington seeks to enhance its influence after maintaining approximately 1,100 soldiers in Niger and bolstering U.S. military presence in Africa.
As France faces the end of its era in Africa, the United States attempts to fill the void by distinguishing its strategy from France’s. Despite both countries remaining allies in the broader fight against terrorism, according to Rama Yade, Director of the Atlantic Council’s Africa Center. While France asserts it does not need Niger or its uranium, the United States and other global powers recognize Niamey’s importance as part of West Africa, which for most global observers, is an interesting point tracing back to the Cold War years and competition between global powers. For decades, this meant competition between the United States and the Soviet Union, but recently, competition has shifted to America’s versus China’s interests. Following the coup in Niger, analysts quickly turned their attention to the Washington-Moscow battle in the African Sahel region, with a new focus on the Russian Wagner Group. Despite U.S. concerns that increasing instability and anti-Western sentiments in the Sahel region could encourage Moscow to gain a larger foothold on the continent, even as its attention and resources are consumed by the war in Ukraine, reports by Western media outlets claim that the Russian army is establishing a force called the “African Legion” as an alternative to “Wagner” and that “Telegram” has published recruitment advertisements, although these reports have not yet been confirmed.
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