Africa must unite to defeat 'organized' terrorists – Senegal president

Africa must unite against terrorism, it is the only way the continent can win against terrorists who are very well organized, this is the view of Senegal’s President Macky Sall.

Sall was speaking on Monday at the 3rd International Forum of Dakar on peace and security in Africa. He added that with complex and multiple causes of terrorism, African armies needed to be better equipped to face terrorists all over the continent.

‘‘First, and obviously, we must imperatively strengthen the response capacity of our defense and security forces to deal with asymmetric threats, especially those related to terrorism. Terrorists are not choirboys. They are well organized.

‘‘They (terrorists) have the means and the most basic modes of action and sophisticated to do their dirty work. Only the defense forces and security trained and efficiently equipped armies can face up to these threats,’‘ he said.

He added that the United Nations peace operations should also up their game in the region. He also expressed concern that the conflict in Mali had turned into “the bloodiest theatre in the history of [UN] peacekeeping missions”.

“The truth is that in most of our countries, the armies are not up to the mark. Today, we have to make internal efforts to raise their levels,” Mr Sall said.

U.N. bases in the country has been targeted by insurgent groups leading to deaths of troops and injuries to others. Attacks by militants linked to al-Qaeda are rampant in the region. As at October, 32 UN peacekeepers had been killed in the west African country this year alone.

Armed rebels took control of nothern Mali in 2012, prompting a French- led intervention that drove them from cities and towns in 2013. However large tracks of the region still remain without control of either the UN or domestic troops.