There is an arc of instability spreading across africa, from nigeria in the west to somalia in the east. An empirical analysis of terrorism in the middle east and africa 2 abstract since president bush declared war on terror, counterterrorism policies have taken up a significant amount of resources. This essay locates the west african region in the context of the post911 discourses on terrorism and. With reference to terrorism in west and east africa, it is apparent that. Click download or read online button to get terrorism and transnational security threats in west africa book now. Cyril i obi cyril obi is the programme coordinator for postcon.
Many of the nationstates in the region are empirically weak. First, the issue of root causes or context for terrorism. Causes and components of violent extremism in the sahel. While terrorism is a global phenomenon, africa seems to bear the greatest brunt of it, largely due to limited military resources and ongoing economic deprivation, which has lured many young people. Reprinted by permission of westview press, a member of. The lack of understanding the root causes of terrorism is a serious problem.
Haram insurgency revisited, african journal of political science and. In the mid20th century, the western powers partitioned west africa, and other parts of the african continent, into nationstates that had nothing in common with each other apart from geographical. Conflict can be defined as a clash or disagreement often violent between opposing groups or individuals. Adopting a threedimensional approach to counterterrorism article pdf available in journal of peacebuilding and development 93. That violence, however, has its own causes and rationale, and. Pdf africa, root causes and the war on terror researchgate. Effects of terrorism effects of terrorism in africa name institution instructor course number effects of terrorism in africa terrorism can be defined as the deliberate use of violence by persons or groups to attain certain goals through threatening a large audience, further than that of the immediate victim cited in crenshaw, 1994. In this article, we investigate public opinion about the root causes of terrorism. These incidents manifest in the forms of bombing, kidnapping, torture, murder and assassination, arson, sabotage, mysterious phone calls, hijacking, intimidation and robbery. It is necessary to find some language with which a meaningful discussion can.
Reprinted by permission of westview press, a member of perseus books group. In gen eral, there is no consensus on which political regime can fend off terrorism most effecti vely. Causes and consequences of terrorism in africa oxford handbooks. While focusing on social history, this work also employs the french annales school approach, which rejects the overspecialization of.
Orr said that this is an old debate, but thus far rarely a constructive one, because actors with vastly differing perspectives too often talk past one another. Since 2009, boko haram alone has killed more than 10,000 people in nigeria and has driven nearly a halfmillion from their homes. Burkina faso and a strategy to counter terrorism in west. For this reason, the history of terrorism in africa should not be seen as a single progression from one point or level to another. Although there are fundamentalist movements and trends in israel, usa and india, that of north africa, particularly algeria, tends to defy any solution as events there have proved since 1992. A new scourge in addition to the boko haram conflict in nigeria and its extension to other countries in the lake chad basin, since january 2016 two major terrorist attacks have fundamentally shaken the security landscape in west africa, underscoring terrorism as an emerging threat to the region. Longstanding development challenges in the region, alongside environmental degradation, political and. Even though in recent times the west african region has witnessed the emergence of major terrorist attacks, however, a security specialist from the united states of america usa, mr. In 1994, martha crenshaws edited volume terrorism in africa made clear how terrorism generally defined as a tactic that uses violence or the threat of violence as a coercive strategy to cause fear and political intimidation was a feature. Article information, pdf download for what makes terrorism tick in africa. North africa was a crucial combat zone during both wars.
Terrorism, negativism, political intrigues, instability and insurgency. This was a briefing on west africa and the sahel with mohamed ibn chambas, special representative and head of unowas. Rise of terrorism in africa manohar parrikar institute. Terrorist organizations must have goals that are not enforceable in the ordinary polit ical. South africas racial discrimination still rears its ugly head from time to time. These threats and attacks highlight the security concerns currently unfolding in some african countries. Africa is home to a very large percentage of the poorest people in the world. In december, the security council is expected to hold a briefing on intercommunal violence and terrorism in west africa. In west africa the recent reorganization of the multinational joint task force mnjtf by nigeria, cameroon, niger, chad and benin to tackle boko haram offered immense hope in many quarters. This widespread poverty serves as a chief cause of underdevelopment in africa. Loosely defined, terrorism is the use of violence to further a political or ideological goal at the expense of the general population.
Movement for the unity and jihad in west africa mujao. Terrorism has been linked to the theory of deprivation, but the extent to which terrorism is an economic good can be explained using a rational choice model of economic agents. Mcguire abstract west africa is one of the most impoverished, underdeveloped, and instabilityprone regions in the world. Au plan of action on the prevention and combating of terrorism in africa adopted at algiers. Terrorism has been linked to the theory of deprivation, but the extent to which terrorism is. They utilize the scheme of targeting civilians as a means of causing and. In 2015, we developed a bold africawide initiative, preventing and responding to violent extremism in africa.
Terrorism overshadows internal conflicts africa renewal. An attack can be rooted in religious, social, or political conflicts such as when one community is oppressed by another. Terrorism has grown exponentially in the african continent, not only in terms of the number of attacks but also the number of countries affected. It can also be said to be an incompatibility, as of two things that cannot be simultaneously fulfilled. The state and civil society, at the nordic africa institute in uppsala, sweden. In the mid20th century, the western powers partitioned west africa, and other parts of the african continent, into nationstates that had nothing in. North africa still grapples with islamic fundamentalism.
As with any business, the business of terrorism needs funds and this is by far the best way for fanatics to obtain funds. What are the causes of and solutions for terrorism. Terrorism risks derailing africas economic and political development in six important ways. Countering violent extremism in west africa and the sahel background the threat of terrorism and violent extremism in west africa and the sahel is of increasing concern to numerous local, regional, and international actors. Concerned about terrorism, organized crime in west africa. While the importance of root causes in socalled substate terrorism is generally accepted, this issue is hotly contested internationally in debates on terrorism. Terrorism in africa the continent of africa has since the last decade of the 20 th century experienced growing incidents of terrorism. Public opinion on the root causes of terrorism and objectives of. In the west, in the region known as darfur, the battles between the tribes of. Whilst the threat of terrorism remains in western europe, it has been. West africa and the sahel, december 2019 monthly forecast.
Conflicts and causes of conflicts in africa project. Africas response to terrorism the africaamerica institute. Intercommunal violence and terrorism in west africa. Somalia are of particular concern, as western responses to the war on terror. Terrorism is also possibly motivated largely by existential otherworldly goals.
For starters, there is the sheer scale of the humanitarian catastrophe. Pdf africa is severely affected by substate terrorisma phenomenon that is. According to the 2017 global terrorism database gtd of the university of maryland, a terrorist attack is defined as the threatened or actual use of illegal force and violence by a nonstate actor to attain a political, economic, religious, or social goal through fear, coercion, or intimidation. Taken together, they are the root causes for african terrorism. A development approach, which works with national governments and stakeholders, regional institutions, faithbased institutions, civil society and many others to augment pve interventions while also striving. This chapter examines the causes and consequences of terrorism in africa, and considers the extent to which existing evidence rationalizes the various explanations for it, and its implications for counterterrorism policy in africa. The movement for unity and jihad in west africa mujao is a splinter group of the organization of alqaida in the islamic maghreb aqim, which formally announced its existence following its abduction of three humanitarian workers from a saharan refugee camp in tindouf on 23 october 2011. Combating terrorism in africa by maxim worcester political and economic environment to 2015 the underlying structural causes of state weakness in subsaharan africa relatively low population densities, problematic population distribution and poor infrastructure will remain. There were several rebel movements across the continent but they were all basically incountry dissident groups. Colonial production, extraverted and coercive as it already was, was ruthlessly reorganized to produce record amounts of primary agricultural and mineral commodities for the imperial armies and economies. Terrorism as a manifestation of conflict could be a historically persistent phenomena with roots in the past. Countering terrorism should then start by examining the major causes of terrorism, then trying to establish dialogue to work on possible solutions.
Africa west africa and the sahel expected council action. African countries have experienced relatively high levels of terrorism. Since 2009, nigeria has gradually slipped into a terrorist enclave where terror acts have become the. Africa is severely affected by substate terrorisma phenomenon that is deeply rooted in the crisis facing a number of african states. Burkina faso and a strategy to counter terrorism in west africa. In fact, this year, the british prime minister theresa may remarked that africa and in particular nigeria is home to some of the poorest people in the world. Ironically, it is the most vulnerable to terrorist attacks because of the availability of small arms and light weapons, bad governance, management problem in the extractive industries, transborder criminal networks capitalising on free movement of people in the. The west african region is the most advanced in designing and nurturing of structures and institutions to fight insecurity in africa. The underlying structural causes of state weakness in subsaharan africa relatively low. Causes and consequences of terrorism in africa start. Why terrorism thrives in west africa gatestone institute. This work then explores countries in northwestern africa, including morocco, which is very.
Introduction it is important to stress, africa is a victim of terrorist attacks omar bongo the area of focus takes a critical look into africa and the resurgence of terrorism focusing on the fundamentals which have been ignored. Ecowas political declaration and common position against terrorism. Terrorism can take multiple forms and have many causes, often more than one. Causes and consequences of terrorism in africa oxford. The security council reiterates its serious concern over the challenging security situation in west africa and the sahel, notably threats posed by terrorism, maritime piracy, conflicts between. West africa giaba commissioned five experts, one each in burkina faso, mali, niger, nigeria and senegal, to carry out a background study on terrorism and terrorist financing in their countries. There are countless of these charities that collect funds in the name of various causes but what they in fact do is fund terrorism. Despite this long counterterrorism campaign the growth of jihadist groups continues in somalia, north africa, and west africa. These countries were selected based on the prevailing incidences of terrorism or its effects on them.
Similarly, the root causes of terrorism in african states should not be assumed to be identical or straightforward. Introduction until the last two decades subsaharan africa was not known to havetransnational terrorist organizations. The decision by the united states to create africom, a separate military command in africa, as a standby military force is the clearest indication that africa is now considered an area with growing terrorist threats and attacks. The data for this research include historical and anthropological sources, government records and published materials. Globalisation and the spread of terrorism in northern and sub.
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