Africa

The Islamic State is increasingly pivoting its operations toward Africa, where it maintains the capacity to coordinate violence across a broad area, generate financial resources, and expand its recruitment base. Over two-thirds of the Islamic State’s global activity in the first half of 2025 was recorded in Africa (see graph below). This pivot to Africa comes as the group’s propaganda also focuses more and more on its operations in Africa, with its affiliates gaining influence and prestige in the global IS network. This surge in activity raises urgent questions about the Islamic State’s capacity for violence in Africa, its strategies, and the threat it poses to regional governments and the world.

Nigeria’s former Minister for Foreign Affairs, Bolaji Akinyemi, has said that Russia has a hand in the Burkina Faso, Niger Republic, and Mali’s sudden announcement of departure from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), as Russia is seeking to weaken ‘western influence’ in Africa.

In 1918, V.I. Lenin renamed the Bolshevik Party the Russian Communist Party. Western scholars and policymakers soon began studying communism and the threat it posed to free nations.

In 1920, the German Workers’ Party adopted a new name: the National Socialist German Workers’ Party, better known as the Nazi Party. Western scholars and policymakers soon began studying Nazism and the threat it posed to free nations.

As news of more mass atrocities committed by the United Arab Emirates-backed Rapid Support Forces (RSF) circulates, the Islamic State has again called for jihad in Sudan. In this week’s Al Naba newsletter, the global jihadist organization made its second call to arms for Sudan this year, while also encouraging foreign fighters to migrate to the country.

A well-armed jihadist group affiliated with al Qaeda is closing in on Bamako, the capital of Mali. The country’s military junta and their Russian partners are struggling to counter the jihadis, who now hold sway in many parts of the huge Sahelian country.

Fuel is running short in Bamako as militants belonging to a group called Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam al-Muslimin (JNIM) cut roads to the capital, attack military patrols and ambush tanker trucks.

For years, France choreographed the politics of the Sahel with soldiers and secret deals. Today, the tables have turned

For half a century, Niger’s plains fed France’s atomic dreams. The uranium pulled from the ground there lit Paris’ streets, powered its factories, and gave France the illusion of energy independence.

Jama’at Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM) claimed its first attack in Nigeria on 28 October. The strike, in the north of Kwara State near the Benin border, left one soldier dead. The Sahel-based group says it seized weapons, equipment and cash.

Villagers gathered for evening prayers at the mosque in Manda, Niger, on June 20. Soon after, the killers arrived.

Terrorists affiliated with the Islamic State group (IS) slaughtered 70 worshippers at the mosque. The handful of survivors lived by playing dead among their fellow worshippers’ bodies.

Western placemen in Africa are being replaced by sovereign geopolitics

On September 17, 2023, leaders from Niger, Burkina Faso, and Mali signed a treaty establishing the Alliance of Sahel States. This military alliance operates as a jointly coordinated defense system, aimed at ensuring the collective security of these nations. Mali’s transitional president, Colonel Assimi Goita, officially declared the establishment of Alliance, as he revealed the signing of Liptako-Gurma charter. This milestone marks the formation of the Alliance of Sahel States, which is aimed at “constructing a framework for collective defense and mutual assistance, ultimately benefiting the population at large”. This occurred amidst Western warnings to potentially intervene in Niger and backing for this stance from certain African nations. ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) representatives have announced their intention to form a global military unit to intervene in Niger. The purpose is to restore the overthrown regime to power and re-establish their governance. ECOWAS is headquartered in Nigeria. The statement made by ECOWAS regarding the threats holds significant weight as the bloc has its own unified armed forces, known as ECOMOG.