Terrorism, organised crime rampant in Sahel, spilling into West Africa: UN

Terrorism and organised crime by violent extremist groups linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State are a pervasive threat in Africa's volatile Sahel region and are spilling over to West Africa's coastal countries, the top UN envoy for the area warned on Friday.

Leonardo Simao, the UN special representative for the Sahel and West Africa, said the focus on combating terrorism has had limited effect in stopping rampant illegal trafficking in the Sahel and the effort needs more police.

It's drugs, it's weapons, it's human beings, it's mineral resources, and even food, Simao said after briefing the UN Security Council.

According to Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' new report on the Sahel and West Africa, hundreds of people have been killed in the first half of 2024 alone in terrorist attacks, many of them civilians..

The vast majority of deaths occurred in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, whose ruling military juntas in March announced a joint security force to fight terrorism, though t