Islamist violence has spread across Africa, mainly in the Sahel, the Lake Chad Basin, Somalia and Mozambique.
ACN.- Africa has witnessed an explosion of violence by local and transnational jihadist groups, which take advantage of organized crime, and by indigenous bandits with local interests. In order to impose extreme Islamist ideology, these fundamentalists exploit existing conflicts and divisions. Their strategy is that of a mobile and opportunistic «caliphate» that favors attacks in areas rich in minerals and where military forces are vulnerable and easy to immobilize.
To impose its ideology, this radicalism makes use of poverty, corruption, weak governance, illiteracy, youth unemployment, lack of access to resources, among other social factors.
The Sahel (Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Cameroon and Chad) was the territory that experienced the most rapid expansion of Islamist attacks. There were 7,899 deaths, more than 40% of the total number of fatalities on the continent. This region is the third deadliest in Africa due to Islamic extremism.
Christians in the crosshairs
In northern Nigeria, where Islam predominates, they suffer systemic discrimination. Christian women are abducted and forced to marry Muslim men, others are forced to wear the hijab. They are also excluded from government positions and denied permission to build churches or chapels. The jihadists use priests to sow fear with continuous kidnappings.
Those who profess the religion of Islam are also victims of extremist violence. However, the trend is that Christians are increasingly targeted by terrorists, eliminating the religious pluralism and harmony characteristic of the continent.
Africa: the most violent continent due to the spread of jihadism
