An African summit was held Monday in the Nigerian capital Abuja to discuss strategies to combat the continent’s growing terrorist threats.
The summit was attended by prominent African leaders including Nigerian President Paula Ahmed Tinobo, his Ghanaian counterpart Nana Akufo-Addo and Togolese Faure Gnassingbe.
The Nigerian President renewed his call for regional cooperation and intelligence sharing, noting the importance of establishing a regional military force capable of countering terrorist operations and contributing to regional stability.
UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohamed stressed the importance of regional cooperation in the fight against terrorism, noting that the center of terrorism has shifted towards sub-Saharan Africa, specifically in the Sahel region.
The signing comes amid escalating terrorist attacks in regions such as Mali, the Horn of Africa, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, prompting African governments to step up their efforts to address these security challenges.
Niger, Burkina Faso, and Mali have faced years of conflict with al-Qaeda and the Islamic State terror “ISIS” group.
Niger announced last month that 23 of its soldiers were killed in a terrorist ambush near the borders with Burkina Faso and Mali in a region of frequent terrorist attacks, but the violence has increasingly spread to the borders of the countries bordering the Gulf of Guinea – Ghana, Togo, Benin, and Ivory Coast.
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