Jihadist attacks spread across Sahel

JIHADISTS in Africa's Sahel region have doubled the scope of their attacks in recent years and now operate in an area twice the size of Spain, leading to 77 000 deaths, according to an analysis of ACLED data.

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IVORIAN soldiers patrol in the village of Bole in north-eastern Ivory Coast, near the border between Ivory Coast and Burkina Faso.

(AFP)

The various factions affiliated with Al-Qaeda - notably the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM) - and the Islamic State (IS) group are now striking across almost all of Mali and Burkina Faso, from western Niger and Nigeria to the Senegal border.

This is according to a study of six years of operations documented by ACLED, an independent organisation that records victims of conflicts around the world.

"The security crisis in the Sahel is complex and there are no quick fixes," warned Charlie Werb, an analyst with Aldebaran Threat Consultants.

The number of attacks in the region exploded from 1 900 in 2019 mainly concentrated on the border between Mali and Burkina Faso to more than 5 500 in 2024.

There have already been 3 800 attacks recorded in 2025, until October 10, bringing the total to 28 715 in almost six years.

Al-Qaeda's expansion into western Mali and southern Burkina Faso, and the Islamic State’s into western Niger and Nigeria, means jihadist groups now operate in an area measuring more than one million square kilometres, twice the size of Spain.