AU-PSC: Morocco emphasizes link between terrorism, separatism

Morocco emphasized the link between terrorist and separatist groups before the Peace and Security Council (PSC) of the African Union (AU) in Addis Ababa on Wednesday.

The Kingdom’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the AU and UNECA, Mohamed Arrouchi, speaking at a PSC videoconference meeting to examine the AU Commission’s report on the fight against terrorism on the continent, stressed that the activities of terrorist groups in Africa have devastating consequences, causing disruption, massive population displacement and considerable loss of life.

The Moroccan diplomat added that these terrorist groups are responsible for numerous violent attacks, kidnappings and terrorist acts aimed at imposing their extremist ideology.

The continent has suffered an economic loss of 171 billion dollars due to terrorism over the last decade, deplored Arrouchi, noting that Africa has had to bear alone the consequences of displacing foreign terrorist fighters who found refuge on the continent.

On the African continent, Arrouchi underlined that a phenomenon rarely witnessed elsewhere is the link and collaboration, in particular between terrorist groups, non-state armed groups, separatists and insurgents involved in transnational crime, who are becoming increasingly dangerous through the circulation of illicit financial flows and the spread of small arms and light weapons, due to the involvement of various players, including state actors.

The Moroccan diplomat stressed the need to rigorously combat this phenomenon, as collusion against the sovereignty and stability of States creates an objective alliance between these nefarious groups, jeopardizing peace and stability in Africa.

To combat terrorism, ensure stability, and protect civilian populations against attacks by terrorist groups, it is also important to combat various sources of financing terrorist groups, including extortion from local populations in areas under their control, kidnapping for ransom, trade and illegal activities such as trafficking psychotropic substances, smuggling and the arms trade, by these terrorist groups and sympathizers sharing extremist ideologies that threaten stability and development in the Continent, he highlighted.

The fight against terrorism and organized crime remains a prerequisite for the consolidation of peace, security and political stability. To achieve this, it is necessary to tackle the deterioration of the socio-economic and humanitarian situation in Africa, particularly in refugee camps, where such a situation encourages the emergence of fanatical and radicalized young people, as it contributes to the spread of violent extremism among these young people lacking future prospects, he pointed out.

The Moroccan diplomat reiterated the importance of adopting a multi-dimensional approach to achieving sustainable peace, stability and development, whose relevance lies in the particular attention it pays to all the structural and fundamental root causes, drivers and possible facilitators of radicalization, violent extremism and terrorism.

In this regard, the Ambassador Permanent Representative of the Kingdom to the AU and UNECA recalled that, as part of the Kingdom’s efforts in the field of peace and security, Morocco hosted the inaugural Conference on “Promoting Peace, Security and Development” in October 2022, with the aim of addressing the growing challenges facing African economies and putting a strain on their security and stability, particularly in post-conflict countries and those in political transition.

The adoption of the Tangier Declaration by the AU PSC is a recognition of the relevance of the multidimensional approach, and constitutes a roadmap for the effective implementation of the Tangier process through the development of “Nexus Projects” in the five regions of the continent, thus addressing the structural causes of radicalization, violent extremism and terrorism and related challenges, he concluded.