Fresh Attacks, Dire Conditions Plague Africa’s Sahel – UN Peacekeeping Boss

Posted by African Examiner African News, Featured, Latest Headlines Wednesday, May 19th, 2021

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) – Jean-Pierre Lacroix, UN Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations on Tuesday, said that the regional troops deployed to combat terrorists in Africa’s Sahel region had scaled up the tempo of their operations in recent months.

Lacroix briefed the UN Security Council on Peace and Security in Africa and the activities of the Joint Force of the Group of Five for the Sahel (G5) at the UN headquarters in New York.

The official said that in spite of a deteriorating security situation and the reverberating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the troops had scaled up efforts in a spirit of solidarity among their global partners.

The UN peacekeeping official told the Council that the fight against armed groups in the Sahel had intensified since late 2020.

He described the Joint Force first deployed in 2017 by the “Group of Five” (G-5) Sahel countries – Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger – as a vital part of the security response in the region.

Countries of the Sahel region had seen an escalation of attacks by armed extremist groups in recent years, striking frequently at security forces and civilians going about their daily lives.

A single attack by gunmen on Jan. 2 left more than 100 people dead in a village in western Niger and on April 21, President Idriss Déby of Chad was killed after sustaining injuries in clashes with rebel groups.

Regional troops deployed through the G-5 Joint Force, and personnel of the UN Stabilisation Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) as well as the French-led “Operation Barkhane”, are struggling to stem the violence.

Describing efforts to respond to the ever more challenging environment, Lacroix said that the Joint Force also faced major challenges in its operational and logistical capacities, such as transport and providing supplies to its troops.

He, however, said in spite of those challenges, the Joint Force and its partners had made some important strides against extremist groups in recent months.

In addition, Lacroix welcomed the G-5 Sahel’s demonstration of commitment to investigating and prosecuting serious allegations of sexual violence, reportedly committed by some of its troops.

Referring to an assessment of the support provided by MINUSMA to the G-5 Sahel Joint Force, which was conducted at the Council’s request, Lacroix said it found the predictability of funding to be a source of concern.

“It is essential that [the Joint Force] receives the assistance it requires to carry out its mandated tasks,” he said, noting that the current support model presents operational challenges and leaves little room for flexibility.

Against that backdrop, he said the UN, alongside the G-5 Sahel and other partners, continues to call for more predictable funding.

Questions about how best to finance the Joint Force, as well as other peace operations across the African continent, have been ongoing among Member States.

“Faced with the situation in the Sahel, the international community must be motivated by a shared responsibility to act…in a spirit of solidarity with the populations of the region,” he emphasised. (NAN)