AFRICA: Martin Ewi, an African security expert has drawn the attention of the United Nations Security Council to the worsening spate of insecurity in the continent, saying the threat from the Islamist insurgents is growing daily.
Ewi feared the African continent could be the “future caliphate (stronghold)” of the marauders.
The expert stated that the insurgents in the continent “have expanded its influence beyond measure.” He noted that at least 20 countries are directly experiencing the insurgent heinous raids, while more than 20 others are “being used for logistics and to mobilize funds and other resources.”
“They are now regional hubs, which have become corridors of instability in Africa,” Ewi stated.
According to him, “The Lake Chad Basin bordering Chad, Nigeria, Niger and Cameroon, is the extremist group’s biggest area of operation. However, areas in the Sahel are now ungovernable while Somalia remains their hotspot in the Horn of Africa.”
A recent attempt to take over or destabilize Uganda failed, Ewi said, adding the Islamic States (IS) affiliate, the Allied Democratic Forces, “remains a serious threat” in the country. In addition, the Islamic State Central Africa has made some regions of Congo and Mozambique “human slaughterhouses,” he said. The IS is also known as Daesh in the Arab Emirates
Ewi said, “The international community is then called upon to help at the time that the threat has gotten out of hand.
“We are seeing this phenomenon playing out in Benin and Togo, which are the latest coastal countries in Africa to experience concentrated attacks of Daesh and other terror groups.”
“The strategy must transcend the group and include its alliances with al-Qaida and other criminal groups including bandits, herders, gangs and various organized crime groups,” Ewi hinted at an approach to ending terrorism in the continent.
The UN Counterterrorism Chief Vladimir Voronkov also warned the Security Council that the threat from Daesh has been rising ever since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020.
According to reports, Voronkov said the border between Iraq and Syria “remains highly vulnerable, with up to 10,000 IS fighters estimated to operate in the area.”
“From there, the group launched in April a global campaign of enhanced operational activity to avenge senior leaders killed in counterterrorism operations,” he said.
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