Segmented terrorism in the Sahara-Sahel zone. The first stage: 2007-2015. Part 1

Abstract

The article deals with complex dynamics of interaction and evolution of extremist groups in the context of clan-cast structures of Tuareg and sub-Saharan Arabs. The “war on terror” has long posed the problem of data misrepresentation in the studies of “Al-Qaeda in land of Islamic Maghreb”. Resilience and fragmentation of this and other terrorist organizations, the trajectory of their divisions and alliances can be only understood in the context of their connection with local elites, ethnic rivalries, reasons of youth recruitment, foreign and domestic resource generating practices. This context-sensitive approach is generally missing in the crime-terror nexus studies. There is little or no ideology-free and reliable information in the field of counter-terrorism - every single fact demands verification. To this end, the research applies the methods of a triangulation of primary and secondary sources and a systematic chronological and contextual investigation of all the facts, events and personalities referred. Contrary to the widespread wisdom, strategies of survival used by different actors in the Sahara-Sahel zone are incompatible with the crime-terror nexus models. The conceptual framing of terror-groups as hybrid, crime-terror enterprises, is misleading because it obscures the pivotal function of hard-core jihadists as a backbone of the whole structure. Parting with one extremist organization, they create another one or seek to establish new alliances to support their cause and terror activities. Not exclusively ideology or pragmatism constitutes the basis of these alliances, but as well local clan-cast structures. The research is relevant for the current political situation in Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, and adjusted regions of Algeria and Mauritania.