Why is ISIS targeting Mali, Nigeria, Chad, Niger and others? The fall of its de facto Syrian capital Raqqa signaled the death of the Islamic State (ISIS) in the Middle East. As the group flees the Middle East, the greatest lifeline for ISIS might come from the jihadists that form the large chunk of ISIS in Africa. State governors recently approved the removal of $1 billion from the Excess Crude Account (ECA) to fight the Boko Haram insurgents and others after a national security summit organised by the National Economic Council. Vice President said: “It was after a national security summit of the National Economic Council that governors at their forum decided to approve some money for national security.” The money is meant to fight Boko Haram, ISIS and others who are shaking up security sector in West Africa.
Up to 6 000 Africans who fought for the Islamic State (ISIS) jihadist group in Iraq and Syria could return home, the African Union’s top security official warned calling on countries to prepare for the threat. Smail Chergui, the AU’s commissioner for peace and security, said African nations would need to work closely with each other and share intelligence to counter returning militants. “There are reports of 6 000 African fighters among the 30 000 foreign elements who joined this terrorist group in the Middle East,” Chergui told a meeting in Algiers, according to the Algeria Press Service news agency.
France has gone into alliance with the G5 Sahel countries (Burkina Faso, Mauritania, Mali, Niger and Chad) to help them deal with security challenges. About EUR 800 million of financial assistance is planned for the 2017-22 period, half of which will be used to acquire new equipment. The focus will be on high-risk areas in countries situated in the crosshairs of terrorist attacks. France also highlighted its determination to strengthen its military co-operation with the police of Sahelian countries in order to facilitate better and more efficient special forces interventions in the event of a major terrorist attack. As part of Operation Barkhane, which was launched in August 2014, France aims to “help the G5 Sahel partners take ownership of the fight against armed terrorist groups (ATG) throughout the Sahel-Sahara region.” About 3 500 soldiers from the French Army are currently deployed on the ground.
“The return of these elements to Africa poses a serious threat to our national security and stability and requires specific treatment and intense co-operation between African countries,” he said. Tens of thousands of foreign fighters joined the Sunni extremist group after it seized vast swathes of Iraq and Syria and declared a caliphate in 2014. But the group has suffered a host of losses to both its territory and military capabilities in the last year.
Backed by a US-led coalition, Iraqi forces gradually retook control of all territory lost to the jihadists, declaring that the country was now liberated from its control. In Syria, the group faces western-backed Syrian rebels, jihadist rivals and government forces that are supported by Russia and Iran. But the losses have sparked fears that ISIS’s remaining foreign fighters may now relocate, bringing their extremist ideology and violence with them.
As the self-proclaimed Islamic State loses more territory in Syria and Iraq, will it lash out elsewhere, and what about al-Qaida? How are nations responding to the prospect of Islamic State recruits returning from Syria and Iraq, and how permanent are new security measures designed to protect against lone-wolf terrorism and domestic radicalization? Federal government needs more than one billion dollars to fight 6 000 African fighters among the 30 000 foreign elements who joined this terrorist group in the Middle East.
While Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL/Da’esh) was on the defensive militarily in Iraq and Syria, its fighters, fleeing beyond those borders, were expanding their attacks to Europe and Africa, the United Nations political affairs chief warned in the Security Council recently, urging action to combat the rise of terrorism. ISIL had enabled other such actions by providing guidance, assistance and inspiration through propaganda. It had also reinforced its presence in West Africa and the Maghreb, and its affiliate Boko Haram was attempting to spread its influence by committing terrorist attacks beyond Nigeria with the several thousand fighters at its disposal.
Funding and manpower remain a problem for the multinational force fighting Boko Haram in North East Nigeria. Nigeria, Chad, Cameroun, Niger and Mali wanted to stop the militants from crossing the long, porous borders between the five countries and kidnapping people – which was affecting tourism. Boko Haram has caused more than 10 million out of school children in Nigeria. There is rise in the internally displaced people in the five West Africa countries. ISIS have made civilians are legitimate targets because they voted for the government that declared war on the group.
Nigerians are asking themselves many questions. Key among them: Could the attacks have been avoided? Many see it as a failure of not just intelligence, but also a result of the security forces’ slow response. .But the north eastern part of Nigeria has not been adequately protected, with the region’s small muslim population there often paying the heaviest price of Killing of people in the five countries have become daily rituals.
As Boko Haram continues to lose ground in Nigeria, its attacks inside Niger, Chad, Cameroun, Nigeria are becoming more brazen, frequent and gory. The group seems to have found in five countries the perfect ground to advance its ideology of violence and bloodshed. It has established within the country sleeper cells mainly made up of young radicalised youths, whom it’s using for such attacks. This, of course, helps it to show al-Qaeda and ISIS, to which it is affiliated and which is a key source of finances, that it still is a force to reckon with despite its losses in Nigeria.
Our most powerful weapons against Boko Haram, ISIS, Al Qaeda and jihadists in our homeland are economic security and inclusion. It is doubtful that many of our countries can repel zealous invaders. We should fear Isis, the Boko Harams, and Al-Shabaabs of this world. However, the real nightmare is what will follow after them.
The Islamic State group is looking to expand its global terror efforts deeper in Mali, Niger, Chad and other African countries, according to a new report. While the militants have already established a presence in both East and West Africa, it is now looking to the North amid reports it continues to be pushed from it Middle East strongholds. Nigerians should encourage the government to mobilize resources and fight ISIS, Boko Haram and others.
INWALOMHE DONALD
