Hollywood helicopter the Swathes of to Islamist
LARGE swathes of Africa could be lost to Jihadist groups unless the West significantly increases its efforts on the continent, it was warned last night.
It follows revelations of a 30 per cent spike in violent activity by Islamic State over the past 12 months, as the group gains new footholds after its expulsion from Syria and Iraq.
Last week the Global Coalition Against Daesh (IS), a group of 83 countries including the US, Britain and France, reported the Islamist sect was gaining support in east Africa after a prolific year which has included kidnappings in the Lake Chad area, suicide attacks in Somalia and the beheading of children in Mozambique.
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said: “Two years on from the territorial defeat of Daesh and the liberation of nearly eight million people from its cruel grip, we remain committed to preventing its resurgence.”
Over the past week alone, Al-shabaab, affiliated to IS, took credit for an attack on the gas-rich Mozambique city of Palma in which 50 people, including Christians from so-called “Crusader” countries, were killed.
And an attempted coup in Niger showed the challenges facing African nations riven by poverty and ethnic division. Niger is just one of six countries – along with Mozambique, the Democratic Republic of Congo,
Mali, Burkina Faso and Nigeria – where IS is actively trying to re-establish footholds.
But it is just one of many Jihadist groups ravaging the continent, taking advantage of poor governance, grievances over foreign influence and the challenges of the pandemic.
Candyce Kelshall, adjunct professor at the University of Buckingham and a fellow in its Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies, said: “What we need to understand is that we are not looking at individual groups carrying out mandates in a coordinated manner.
“We’re looking at a collective sentiment. It’s like a fire. Each success is dry kindling for another entirely