In its annual Global terrorism index, the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP, a global think tank based in Sydney) reports that the Sahel region now accounts for almost half of all terrorism deaths globally and has shown a dramatic increase in violence, with the number of deaths rising thirty-fold since 2007: "The epicentre of terrorism has now definitely shifted from the Middle East to the central Sahel region of sub-Saharan Africa. Particularly active in the Sahel are the Islamic State (IS) and Jamaat Nusrat Al-Islam wal Muslimeen (JNIM), the latter group linked to Al-Qaeda. Organised crime and terrorism, in the Sahel, have merged with complex groups and alliances that economically feed the existence of both phenomena: terrorist organisations generally integrate with organised crime or provide protection and safe passage for the illicit trafficking of drugs, weapons, human beings and precious metals.

Burkina Faso is the country in the Sahelian area that has suffered, and is suffering, the most, with the number of victims rising by almost 70 per cent since 2007, despite a drop in the overall number of attacks. The phenomenon of terrorism has also worsened in neighbouring Mali and Niger, all three countries led by a military government.

Last year, globally, deaths caused by terrorism increased by 22% to 8,352, the highest level since 2017, and the impact of terrorism has become increasingly concentrated, with ten countries accounting for 87% of total terrorism-related deaths. Over 90 per cent of terrorist attacks and 98 per cent of terrorism-related deaths in 2023 occurred in conflict zones, underlining the strong link between conflict and terrorism.

Terrorism is not, however, the deadliest form of violence in the world: armed conflicts cause nine times more deaths than terrorism, even though terrorism has a particularly strong psychological and social impact that is bound to traumatise entire social groups.

See, L’Africa occidentale è l’epicentro del terrorismo