West Africa and Maghreb
Under-governed spaces in West Africa and the Maghreb created an environment in which al Qaeda’s affiliate, al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), established safe havens. AQIM currently operates out of the Western Sahara desert, including parts of Algeria, northern Mali, and western Libya. It has benefited financially from smuggling routes that cut through the region and is known to have received millions of dollars in ransom payments for kidnapped Westerners. AQIM coordinates its activities with Ansar al Din and the Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa (MUJWA) in Mali, and with Ansar al Sharia in Libya. It is also strengthening ties to Boko Haram in Nigeria.
This section includes analysis of those issues.
IN THIS SECTION
Questions on Mali
Terrorist attacks in Algeria and French military operations in Mali have raised questions about the impact of ongoing unrest in West Africa on the United States.
Changing Landscape: Jihad in Mali
The unfolding developments in Mali and across West Africa deserve close attention, particularly given the region’s emergence as the new front in jihad.
