The terrorist threat in North Africa: How it is developing and how to counter it

8 December 2015: The terrorist threat in North Africa by Ecfr on Mixcloud

The attacks on 13 November in Paris, the assault on one of Mali's most chic hotels a week later, and the first suicide bombing to strike Tunis coupled with ongoing insecurity in Libya and elsewhere have refocused attention on the threat of terrorism to Europe, its interests and partners in North Africa and the Sahel. What is the threat to North Africa? How will it impact the transition to democracy in Tunisia and political stability in Algeria and Morocco? And will the measures taken to prevent terrorism in North Africa and the Sahel make security better, or worse?

Riccardo Fabiani is a senior analyst at the Eurasia Group focusing on Algeria, Mauritania, Morocco, Tunisia and Libya, with a particular emphasis on the region's Islamist movements, terrorism, and political economy. Prior to joining Eurasia Group, Riccardo worked as a senior economist on the Middle East and North Africa at D&B Country Risk Services and as a remote analyst on North Africa for Exclusive Analysis.

Andrew Lebovich is a visiting fellow at ECFR focusing on North Africa and the Sahel. He is currently a doctoral student in African History at Columbia University in New York, where he studies religion, politics, and society in North Africa, the Sahara, and the Sahel. He previously worked for the Open Society Initiative in West Africa (OSIWA) as a Sahel consultant advising the organisation on political, social, and security issues in West Africa and the Sahel, and for the New America Foundation.

Mattia Toaldo is a policy fellow for ECFR's Middle East & North Africa programme where he focuses on Libya, Israel/Palestine and migration issues. Mattia is a member of the Council of the Society for Libyan Studies and of the scientific board of Limes, the Italian review of Geopolitics. From 2011-2013, he was a stipendiary fellow at the Institute for the Americas in London and a postdoctoral fellow for the British School in Rome and the Society for Libyan Studies, where his work focused on Western reactions to the Arab uprisings.

Anthony Dworkin is a senior policy fellow at ECFR, where he leads the organisation’s work in the area of human rights, democracy, and justice. Among other subjects, he has conducted research and written on European and US frameworks for counterterrorism, on the European Union’s human rights strategy, and on the pursuit of justice in the international response to mass atrocities. Since 2011, he has also followed political developments in North Africa after the Arab uprisings, with a particular focus on Egypt and Tunisia.