Why did Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso kick out French forces out of their countries? Why did Ibrahim Traore overthrow Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba? Why did Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso form a defense pact? All the answers to these questions stem from a problem that has plagued countries of the Sahel and is currently spilling over to neighboring Western countries. This problem which is a plague that needs to be dealt with is Insecurity caused by Islamic Jihadists. The security issue has become so dire that countries of the Sahel most especially Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger have been tagged by Western Media as the top dangerous place to visit in the world. The insurgency has greatly affected the lives of the citizens of these countries leading to the death of thousands and displacement of millions more. As everybody knows, efforts have been made to fight this major threat by the International community, foreign governments as well as the host nations who are suffering from the issue. However, despite all their efforts nothing has changed. Instead, it seems these jihadists are growing, spreading to other places, and taking over territories in the Sahel and other West African countries including Nigeria.

The question now is why are these jihadists a persistent threat. Why is it that despite all the efforts to fight them, they are still operating and are growing even stronger than before? Who is behind them because it isn’t possible that these jihadists who consist of men without any power can wreak havoc on their own? Who is funding and giving them weapons? It is known that if you want to deal with an issue, the best way to deal with it is to deal with it from the root so stay with us as we reveal to you who is behind the armed insurgents in the Sahel.

It may seem as if the Islamist Jihadists who are causing havoc across the Sahel and West Africa started in the Sahel but in truth, Jihadist implantation in the Sahel can be traced to back to the end of the Algerian civil war between 1991 to 2002 which pitted Algerian security forces against Islamist armed groups. After years of fighting, reportedly claiming the lives of 60,000 to 150,000 people, Algerian authorities implemented the 1999 ‘Concorde civile’ that granted amnesty to thousands of these jihadists. While most accepted the amnesty, some others created the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC) in 1998 and continued fighting the Algerian regime. Hunted by Algerian security forces, and lacking popular support, the GSPC was however in need of backing and so in 2096, the group pledged allegiance to the jihadist organization al-Qaeda, and was rebranded al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQUIM) in 2007. Although some members of the newly formed AQUIM remained in Algeria, others began to move to the northern Sahel region and allied with local communities mostly through marriage.

And so, began their infiltration into the Sahel. For years, they used the Sahel as a rear base to gather wealth, arms, and local recruits, ensuring the expansion of their group. During this time, their attacks and operations on local communities cannot be compared to what it is now. But, everything changed in 2012. In 2012, Mali began to battle with internal conflict when armed rebels composed of members of the Tuareg tribe and Arab fighters launched an attack on the Malian government. These Tuareg rebels representing only 10 percent of the Malian population organized under the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad. Seeing this as an opportunity, the jihadists at first backed the Malin rebels and together they were able to take over cities in northern Mali, including the regional capitals of Gao, Kidal, and Timbuktu. However, the Malian rebels separated from the AQUIM in June 2012 following their attempt to impose Islamic law and declare an Islamic caliphate over the northern territory. 

There was a period of relative calm until the security crisis deteriorated in 2013 when the AQUIM and other Islamic jihadist groups pushed further south to capture Konna in central Mali. It was at this time that the Malian government asked for aid from France and in response France sent French forces to Mali to help. This was the beginning of Operation Barkhane. When the French forces came, they and the Malian forces were able to drive out the jihadists from their urban stronghold. This was the only victory the French forces had throughout their stay in Mali. Despite losing their northern cities, the jihadists were able to survive by fleeing to other Sahelian rural areas in Burkina Faso and Niger and so began the spread of jihadist insurgency in Central Sahel. Since then these Islamic groups have grown stronger, taking over territories in these countries. These jihadist groups settled in neglected rural areas in central Mali, northern Burkina Faso, and western Niger and thrived by exploiting local grievances and disorders. They have launched attacks on innocent citizens, resulting in their deaths and the loss of their homes. In Burkina Faso, some of these jihadists have taken over gold mines which they use to finance their operations.

The question still remains. How are the Jihadists able to regroup every time they are pushed out of a region? Not every one of these groups has access to gold mines so how do they manage to purchase sophisticated weapons used to carry out their operations? The answer can be traced back to a government letter that was leaked in 2013.

According to the letter, the country backing Islamist Jihadists is none other than Qatar. The letter directly implicates the Emir of Qatar in the financing of terrorism. It revealed that Qatar’s regime funneled $15 million dollars to the Islamist movements in northern Mali and to an entity in the Sahel. This shocking revelation was revealed by the Washington D.C.-based Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) which translated and published the alleged Qatari government letter with the subject “Secret and Urgent” on November 29th. According to MEMRI, the letter was sent from Youssef Hussein Kamal, Qatar’s then-minister of economy and finance, to the director of the office of the Emir of Qatar and it reads as follows.

“I wish to refer to your Excellency’s letter (da-49-2011) of April 4, 2011, which includes the esteemed directions from His Highness, the Emir of the country, regarding sending urgent monetary support to the Islamic opposition movements in northern Mali and to the organization of the Sahel and to the Sahara in the amount of US $15 million.”
The letter adds, “This sum must be distributed with the knowledge of the state security service, represented by Mr. Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Nue’eimi, under the section of humanitarian support.” The letter further reads “I wish to inform Your Excellency that in the implementation of the esteemed directives, the sum of the cash support, in the amount of US $15 million, was delivered to the state security service represented by Mr. Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Nue’eimi.”

This is truly shocking. Imagine what $15 million can do for these armed insurgents. It’s no wonder they keep on growing stronger and you can be sure that this was not the first time that Qatar sent that kind of money and neither was it the last time. Marc Eichinger, a former French intelligence agent who has written extensively about Qatar’s financing of terrorism, told i24NEWS that “This document is more important than the others in that for the first time we have proof the Emir is directly involved in the financing of terrorism. He personally gave the orders to pay money to people over whom he has no control. This funding destabilized the whole of West Africa to satisfy and provoke an unprecedented wave of migration.” Another source from the French military intelligence also said that the Tuareg rebels, the Al-Qaida jihadists, and other Islamic jihadist groups have all received cash from Qatar. So, this means that it is possible that the Tuareg rebels who are supposed to be fighting for their so-called Independence might be doing so in the interest of Qatar.

During this period when the letter was revealed and the media carried the news, Sadou Diallo mayor of northern Mali City, Gao which had fallen to the Islamist jihadist told RTL radio that “the French government knows perfectly well who is supporting these terrorists. Qatar, for example, continues to send so-called aid and food every day to the airports of Gao and Timbuktu.” This was confirmed by two French politicians who accused Qatar of giving material support to separatists and Islamists in north Mali, adding fuel to speculation that the Emirate is playing a behind-the-scenes role in spreading Islamic fundamentalism in Africa. The comment made by Sadou Diallo can be believed because there are Qatari non-governmental organizations present in northern Mali and when the Tuareg rebels took over in 2013, the Qatari Red Crescent was the only humanitarian organization granted access to the vast territory.

If you think about it, it actually makes sense that Qatar is behind it is because these local jihadists do not have the manpower to operate by themselves and what better way to expand their operations than to align themselves with Qatar whose foreign policy for more than two decades has focused on aligning itself with local Islamists in many regions of the world.” France, the USA, and the West in general are aware of this fact but are they doing anything about it? No, and they won’t do anything about it no matter how passionately you hear them talk about the insecurity caused by these insurgents in the Sahel. Do you know why? It’s simple. It works in their favor. The only way they would do something about it is if it starts working against their interest.

So, what does this mean for Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger whose military juntas are trying to combat these jihadists?

The fact is if the leaders of these three countries are going to be successful in their quest, they are going to have to deal with the problem from the root. This means they would have to find a way to stop these Jihadists from receiving financial support from Qatar or any other Middle Eastern countries that might be backing them. However, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger should not be alone in this fight. All African countries should join hands with them to deal with this problem or else it won’t gradually move from being a Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso problem to being a West African problem and then an African problem.

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