Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf explained the complexity of the security situation in the Sahel and called for a completely new approach to combat what he says are no longer terrorist groups, but rather terrorist armies.
“Terrorism has become the number one threat to peace and security in Africa. Recent developments have clearly demonstrated that, while this threat has diminished considerably in other parts of the world, it has increased exponentially on our continent, particularly in the Sahel region,” Attaf said on Friday. the UN.
“Drawing lessons from its bitter but successful experience in the fight against this scourge, Algeria firmly believes that a two-pronged approach is essential to combat both the manifestations of terrorism and its root causes in the region. Sahel and beyond,” he stressed. “In the face of an ever-evolving threat, we certainly need a new approach, new commitment, and bold action. The status quo is no longer an option, nor a comfortable position,” he said.
“A terrorist army”
In his development, Ahmed Attaf suggested that the countries and people of the Sahel region “are confronted with terrorist groups which are considered among the most dynamic and deadliest in the world, groups heavily armed and equipped with sophisticated weapons, groups that have extended their control over vast geographic areas where they act as de facto local authorities, and armed groups capable of deploying incredibly skillful military strategies.”
“In short, in Algeria, we have stopped using the term ‘terrorist groups’ to describe what could accurately and realistically be described as ‘terrorist armies,’” he said. In this context, he called on the international community to “give priority to the fight against the proliferation factors which have triggered and fueled the expansion of this growing threat”.
