Zawaya

Sahel and Maghreb populations are fighting the same evil

By: Iqbal Al Gharbi

Representatives of 30 member States of the Global Counter-Terrorism Forum (GCTF), a number of Sahel countries, as well as regional and international organizations, all attended a meeting on terrorism.

The meeting focused on five aspects: Border security, cooperation between police forces, the fight against funding terrorism, legal and judicial cooperation and reinforcement, and community commitment.

How can Maghreb countries benefit from global collaboration in addressing the Sahel unrest?

Politically, the concept of stability goes beyond violent conflicts, to include a wider range of risks and vulnerabilities with a direct or indirect bearing on security.

A number of studies identified socio-political causes – namely poverty, underdevelopment and the waste of human and financial resources -, besides older concerns such as desertification, erosion of arable land, and humanitarian and food crises, as factors affecting the stability of a region.

In fact, interactions between environmental, economic and sociopolitical elements are thus complex and multidimensional.

The Sahel region is closely linked to the Maghreb, both geographically and ethnically. Therefore, any international strategy designed for the Sahel should include Maghreb populations.

However, after the Arab spring events, the Maghreb is now at a turning point in history. International cooperation to fight terrorism may only be established within a framework that respects democracy and human rights.

Monitoring and controlling such vast territories require a tremendous exchange of information between neighbouring countries.

This cooperation includes financial and technical assistance aiming to strengthen the capacity of each country to combat terrorism on its own territory, and to carry out joint actions against a common enemy on transnational networks.

However, these countries must ensure that their counter-terrorism measures comply with their obligations under international law, particularly international human rights law, international refugee law and international humanitarian law.

We must always bear in mind that terrorism stems from cultural and economic exclusion amidst the absence of political rights. Therefore, the fight against terrorism requires education, democratisation, and reinforced social cohesion.

In fact, terrorist organizations recruit new followers from a large pool of idle youth in the region. As long as the economic, social, cultural and political situations are not standardized through a new Marshall Plan, this fact will persist as a considerable threat.