The United Nations has warned that the Islamic State (ISIS) remains a major security threat in Africa, particularly across the Sahel, the Lake Chad Basin and parts of Central Africa.
Senior UN counter-terrorism officials delivered the warning on Wednesday during a briefing to the Security Council on the activities of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
Oguljeren Niyazberdiyeva, Chief of the Office of the Under-Secretary-General for Counter-Terrorism, said Africa continues to bear the greatest burden of attacks carried out by ISIS and its affiliates.
She identified the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) as the most active ISIS affiliate in the world.
Despite ongoing military operations against the group, Niyazberdiyeva said ISIS has remained resilient by shifting from a central command structure to decentralised networks united by extremist ideology.
She also warned that the group is increasingly using artificial intelligence, encrypted communication platforms, virtual assets, drones and other emerging technologies to recruit members, raise funds and coordinate attacks across borders.
According to her, terrorist organisations continue to exploit weak governance, armed conflicts, poverty and fragile security institutions to strengthen their operations.
She called for stronger international cooperation and practical measures to stop ISIS and its affiliates from regaining influence.
Members of the UN Security Council agreed that African countries need greater international support to tackle the growing terrorist threat.
Somalia urged the international community to strengthen national counter-terrorism programmes, while the Democratic Republic of the Congo called for increased assistance to countries on the front line.
Liberia’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Lewis Brown, said sub-Saharan Africa now accounts for more than half of global terrorism-related deaths.
He warned that extremist groups operating in the Sahel are no longer trying only to destabilise governments but are seeking to replace them entirely.
Brown also expressed concern that terrorist activities are spreading towards coastal West African countries and called for stronger border security, intelligence sharing and regional cooperation.
The Security Council further raised concerns over foreign terrorist fighters, online radicalisation, organised crime and the rapid use of technology by extremist groups.
The council concluded that defeating terrorism will require not only military action but also political, economic and social strategies tailored to the needs of affected communities.
