The Togolese government has confirmed that an al-Qaeda-linked insurgent group, Jama’a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM), has carried out 15 attacks in the country’s northern region this year, killing 54 civilians and eight soldiers.
The attacks mark a significant escalation in jihadist violence as extremist groups continue to expand their reach from the Sahel into coastal sub regional countries like Togo.
Togo’s Foreign Minister, Robert Dussey, said around 8,000 security personnel have been deployed in the north, near the border with Burkina Faso, where JNIM has intensified operations.
He noted that Togo maintains strong cooperation with Burkina Faso and serves as a link between ECOWAS and the Confederation of Sahel States.
Security Analysts attribute the surge in violence to the broader regional instability following the 2012 jihadist infiltration of a Tuareg rebellion in Mali, which has since spread across the Sahel, claiming thousands of lives and displacing millions.
