Militant Islamist Groups in Africa Sustain High Pace of Lethality

Fatalities and violent events linked to militant Islamist groups in Africa sustained near record pace, with the Sahel and Somalia accounting for 79 percent of related deaths.

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The Sahel remained the most lethal theater on the continent for the fourth year in a row.

Militant Islamist insurgencies have thus retained a high operational capacity despite the military juntas seizing power.

More civilians died due to the Sahelian and Russian security forces’ violence against civilians than by militant Islamist groups in 2024.

Burkina Faso has been the locus of militant Islamist violence in the Sahel since 2019.

Southern Mali has also witnessed an alarming increase in militant Islamist group activity in recent years.

The Islamic State in Somalia (ISS) has established a nerve center for its operations in the Puntland region of northeastern Somalia.

For the first time, there were more militant Islamist-linked violent events in Cameroon than Nigeria.

The 31 percent of total fatalities resulting from violence against civilians in Mozambique is greater than any other militant Islamist group in Africa.

Both the Islamic State in Libya and Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb pose an ongoing threat.

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Based on reporting by ACSS