United against terror

Valentina Soria is a research analyst at the Royal United Services Institute in London (RUSI), and works in the Counter-terrorism and Security Program.

Deutsche Welle: Why is Mali the chosen terror hub for these armed groups affiliated to al-Qaeda?

Valentina Soria: Obviously it comes down to the fact that Mali, as is the case with Somalia, are countries where the central government is very weak. So the government itself doesn't have much control over its own territory, especially in the border regions. So it is very hard for them to exert some kind of authority, and so it becomes easier for these groups and organizations, like it was in Afghanistan before 2001, to establish training grounds and infrastructure and to plan their militant activities from these lawless regions.

How much do we know about these al-Qaeda linked groups?

Well AQIM (al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb) has been on the scene for a while now. It has been a security issue since 2006. Algerian security troops have been engaged with AQIM since then actually. They have carried out quite a few terrorist attacks in the region and other neighboring countries. They haven't been one of the most prominent groups associated with al-Qaeda so far, because al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) has been more of a hub for training, organization, and operational control for some al-Qaeda-linked individuals in the West. AQIM is obviously another cell or affiliated group, which Western intelligence services are very well aware of, but so far it hasn't yet caused a direct threat for European security. But definitely it is an issue for the region and for African countries.

A number of Europeans have been kidnapped by some of these groups. Isn't that a clear threat?

It is, obviously I wouldn't say it isn't. But it is not a direct one as was the case with al-Qaeda central when they were able to carry out attacks in Spain, London and so on. But obviously it is a security issue for Europe as well, in so far as you rightly say, they go for kidnappings of Westerners in the city and neighboring regions. This is the reason why the security organs are now more committed to stamping them out. But also for the economic implications of their actions, because if they keep kidnapping Western tourists in these countries, then obviously these countries are no longer seen as safe destinations for Europeans. And so it becomes a much more complex issue which they have to get a grip on.

Do we know why they have been targeting Europeans and Westerners in general?

I would say that it is related to the kind of threat that al-Qaeda as a bigger organization poses, the idea is that they will go targeting Europeans or Westerners more generally because they are seen as the "far enemy." European countries or the US are seen as supporting governments or authorities that they are trying to topple or destabilize in Africa in this case. They have realized that the economic impact of their actions could be much worse than the direct security one, so they will continue to carry out terrorist attacks in Algeria and neighboring countries because as I said, these countries would no longer be seen as being safe for tourists and so there is the economic damage.

What measures have been taken to end this kind of terror?

Algeria has been dealing with Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb since 2006. They have been trying to forcefully rout them out from Mali, because as I said earlier Mali has become the main operational hub for them, because the Malian government finds it difficult to control its own territory. Algeria has also been particularly active recently. It has concluded some kind of agreement with neighboring countries, for example Niger and Mauritania, to try and beef up security in the region, border security for example, and intelligence-sharing between these countries just to try and tackle what they see as a main threat to security and instability in the region.

Military intervention doesn't seem to be succeeding, why is that?

It's difficult and it takes time, especially when it comes to military action which has to be carried out in a neighboring country. It's very difficult to get that kind of authority to intervene to the extent which is necessary to really make a difference. We have seen this in Somalia for example, when Kenyan troops crossed the border and started to engage Al-Shabaab more forcefully there.

So it is really difficult, but I think that the kind of collaboration they are really trying to boost, in terms of regional co-operation and engagement by all countries affected by the threat posed by Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, may actually be the right one. Rather than unilateral actions, what is needed is much more regional engagement to try and stamp out the threat. This might probably be more successful in the future as long as all the countries who have got a stake in it agree to make a contribution to it.

Interview: Asumpta Lattus / cm
Editor: Susan Houlton / rm