West African states decided over the weekend to create a new 2,000-strong force to combat the jihadist threat in the region, diplomatic and military sources told reporters on Tuesday.
The idea of an anti-jihadist force has been discussed for years by the 12 countries of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
The Sahel, which cuts across Africa separating the continent’s north from its sub-Saharan part, has for years been plagued by jihadist insurgencies led by groups linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group.
Photo: Reuters
The groups have been particularly active in three former French colonies — Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger — that quit the ECOWAS group in the past few years following military coups.
The three countries would not take part in the new force, officials said.
Following a meeting of ECOWAS military chiefs in Freetown, details of the new force to “combat terrorism” were decided, a senior Nigerian military official told reporters.
Several participating countries announced the number of soldiers they would contribute, the official said.
The initial goal is to have about 2,000 troops ready to fight “terrorism and insecurity” across west Africa, he said.
During the discussions, military chiefs “painted a worrying picture of the regional security landscape,” a source close to the meeting said.
“The discussions focused on the rise of the terrorist threat, the expansion of transnational organized crime and the persistent challenges related to maritime insecurity,” the source said.
The troops of the new force would remain stationed in their countries of origin, with Sierra Leone serving as a logistical base for the group, an official Sierra Leonean source said.
Officials were still thrashing out the details of how to finance the force, another source said.
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