G5 Sahel confirms continuing to defeat terrorism, but researcher says they only have meetings

Ahmed Adel

The Group of Five Sahel-Saharan States (G5 Sahel) has announced continuing to move forward in countering terrorist groups, which threaten the security and stability of the entire region, pointing to the need to activate and coordinate the defense and security roles of the group’s joint military force.

The ninth session of the G5 Sahel Defense and Security Committee, which was hosted by Mauritania in the capital Nouakchott on Thursday, October 24, was attended by the leaders of the armies of the five member countries (Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Chad and Burkina Faso), in addition to French General François Lecointre, chief of staff of the French armies, and the commander of the Operation Barkhane forces in the Sahel region. According to the final statement, the armies of the Sahel countries will not stop in the face of the brutal terrorism that has recently craved the region.

Mohamed Aznaki Ould Sid Ahmed, a military and security expert at the Permanent Secretariat of the G5 Sahel, said that the results achieved so far confirm that the group is on the right track and determined more than ever to defeat the terror of armed organizations deployed in the Sahel-Saharan region.

For his part, Lecointre praised the results achieved by the G5 Sahel Joint Force despite the lack of resources available in some countries, adding that international partners and financiers will continue to support the Sahel with funds and weapons.

Burkina Faso’s Army Chief of Staff General Moise Minoungou, the rotating chairman of the Defense and Security Committee, stressed the difficult security situation in the Sahel-Saharan region due to the violence witnessed by terrorist operations carried out by armed organizations, which the development process pursued by the G5 countries.

The G5 Sahel countries, in addition to international powers, face difficulties and constraints related to the geopolitical and human nature of the region, which extends from the Gulf of Guinea to the Sahel and the Sahara, reflecting the political and security situation and becoming more violent. The regional and international forces, headed by the United States, have worked to limit the spread of armed terrorist organizations. In 2014, they founded the G5 Sahel group, given that West Africa, with its valuable mines and resources, is an important hub for major powers and is a crucial point for the security and stability of a number of other countries.

The Sahel countries are seeking to limit the spread of terrorist organizations, as well as to develop broader, more effective and comprehensive coordination mechanisms to assist countries experiencing activity by armed organizations through more integration and cooperation between the Sahel countries in the areas of intelligence and security. This was confirmed by the meeting of Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara with his Senegalese counterpart Macky Sall on the sidelines of talks between the two parties in June 2019.

African affairs researcher Nasser Maamoun Issa said that the meetings are numerous but the result is one, adding that there are countries that can provide logistical support, others can provide financial support, and still others can provide military support, but so far there has not been a serious step taken on the ground to face armed organizations. He stressed that Egypt has enough experience to provide logistical and military support, and that there are countries that deserve support such as Burkina Faso, Chad and Niger, where terrorist groups have found a fertile environment for the establishment of camps and the recruitment of young people.

Issa said that terrorists in the Sahel are becoming increasingly sophisticated, with funding from human trafficking, drugs and money laundering.

The confrontation between the G5 Sahel and terrorists favors radical groups with strong military support, updated logistical information and international protection given by some countries, which are among the reasons for the emergence of these movements, Issa said, pointing out that each of these factors strengthen these groups against the G5 Sahel, which only has meetings but no meaningful support or information on the ground.