The last decade has seen an increase in terror groups in africa, some of this groups are more dangerous while some are still in the baby stage and would grow to be a full adult if nothing is done to decapitate them. Here is a list of the 7 deadliest terror groups currently operating in africa.
7. Soldiers of Egypt
Soldiers of Egypt in arabic Ajnad Misr is an active Salafist Islamist militant group that has been operating near Cairo, Egypt.
The group was founded by Humam Muhammed in 2013, after he split away from the Ansar Bait al-Maqdis militant group. The group claims that its attacks are “retribution” for the August 2013 Rabaa Massacre; notably, the group targets only security forces.
The Cairo Court for Urgent Matters declared the group a terrorist group on 22 May 2014. The United States State Department designated it a terrorist organization on 18 December 2014.
6. The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF)
ADF is a rebel group opposed to the Ugandan government and is considered a terrorist organisation.
It was originally based in western Uganda with bases also in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
Since the late 1990s, the ADF has operated in the DRC’s North Kivu province near the border with Uganda. While repeated military offensives against the ADF have severely affected it, the ADF has been able to regenerate because its recruitment and financial networks have remained intact. As of November 2015, the number of attacks on Congolese forces continued, with weekly attacks of varying size taking place and killing more than 400 people in 2015.
5. Niger Delta Avengers
The Niger Delta Avengers is the latest militant group to emerge in Nigeria – attacking oil installations in a campaign which threatens the Nigerian economy.
They claim that their struggle is focused on the liberation of the People of Niger Delta from decades of divisive rule and exclusion.
The NDA (Niger Delta Avengers) has carried out a barrage of attacks on oil installations in the Niger Delta region, causing a huge decline in oil production, which is the mainstay of the West African state’s economy.
In fact due to the activities of NDA, Nigeria’s oil production dropped to 1.65 million bpd, as against the projected 2.2 million bpd.
Currently, it is not known who officially leads the group.
4. Jamaat Al-Islamiyya
Jamaat al-Islamiyya, which means “the Islamic Group,” is Egypt’s largest Islamist militant organization and has a presence both in Egypt and abroad.
The group has been active since the 1970s.
The radical group is dedicated to the overthrow of the Egyptian government and replacing it with an Islamic state.
The group is best known for the 1997 attack at Luxor’s Hatshepsut Temple that left 58 tourists dead.
The Jamaat spiritual leader, Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman, is currently serving a life sentence in the United States for his involvement in the 1993 attack on the World Trade Center.
3. Fulani Militant Group
The fourth deadliest known terrorist group has been named as the Fulani militant group operating in Nigeria and parts of the Central African Republic.
The little-known group is made up of individuals from the semi-nomadic pastorial ethnic group Fula people existing across several West African nations, has seen a dramatic escalation of its activities in the past year.
In 2013, Fulani herdsmen killed around 80 people in total – but by 2014 the group had killed 1,229. As much as 92 per cent of their attacks target private citizens, reflecting the group’s primary concern over the ownership of farmland. Each attack claims an average of 11 lives, with the largest known in April 2014 killing as many as 200 people after a group of the militants targeted community leaders and residents during a meeting in central province Zamfara.
2. Al-Shabab
Headed by Ahmed Umar, Al-Shabab is a solamian terrorist group that specializes in Jihadist attacks mostly in eastern african countries. With a troop strength of more than 8000, Al-Shabab is a cause of worry for most of the East African countries as it mostly operates from rural areas which makes it very difficult to track its members.
The group is known for the 3 day attack they carried out on Kenya’s Westgate Mall In 2013 where they murdered at least 67 people. Till date the sole attack is still regarded as one of the worst terrorist attacks in the kenya’s history.
1. Boko Haram
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fQAj3Fdoqng
Boko Haram is a terrorist group which operates from Northeastern Nigeria. The group promotes the idea that it is forbidden for Muslims to indulge in any social or political activity which emanates from the Western society.
Boko Haram was considered to be a sister organisation of Al Qaeda up until 2015 when the leader Abubakar Shekau announced its allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). The group is responsible for hundreds of attacks – including suicide bombing – in both nigeria, chad and cameroon.
The group became known wordwide after they kidnapped over 276 schoolgirls from Chibok in April 2014.
