Examining the security situation on the African Continent

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Author: Cara Rau, Political and Intelligence Analyst  WARNING: THIS REPORT CONTAINS DESCRIPTIONS OF GRAPHIC VIOLENCE AND CONTENT SOME MAY FIND DISTURBING. READER DISCRETION IS ADVISED.  Bottom Line Up Front  Despite the world's largest displacement crisis affecting Sudan, and Burkina Faso being ranked by the Global Terrorism Index (GTI) in 2025 as the nation the most affected by terrorism in the world, the mainstream media still appears to favour reporting on Gaza and Ukraine. Of course these conflicts deserve our attention, but so do other parts of the world, specifically Africa, a continent the world media has left behind.  South Africa   Despite South Africa not being at war nor being actively targeted by Jihadist insurgents, the security situation in the country remains dire. Violent crime remains a threat with gender-based violence, gang violence, organised crime and other related topics continuing to make local headlines. The security situation in ...

Proof-of-Life Image Emerges for Austrian National Currently Held by Islamic State Sahel Province (ISSP)

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Authored by Cara Rau; Intelligence Analyst focussed on terrorism and political violence. 

Bottom Line Up Front 

On 29 April 2025,  Aïr-Info Agadez reported that it had obtained exclusive proof of life for Eva Gretzmacher, an Austrian national kidnapped from her home on the night of 11 January 2025 in Agadez, Niger.  Aïr-Info Agadez said that they received the proof of life in the form of a photo on 29 April 2025, the victim's 74th birthday. Aïr-Info Agadez  also reported that their sources confirm that she is in good health and currently being held by Islamic State Sahel Province (ISSP) in Mali. The victim was reportedly moved between Ansongo and Ménaka, then to Adéramboukane in Mali's Gao Region. The same source also stated that, according to information cross-checked by Aïr Info, Eva Gretzmacher is being held together with Claudia Abbt (aged 67), a Swiss-Nigerien dual citizen who was kidnapped from her home on the evening of 13 April 2025 from Agadez. 


Figure 1: Proof-of-life image for Eva Gretzmacher. Source:  Aïr-Info Agadez 


Chinese Citizens Kidnapped in Diffa Region

On 2 February 2025, two Chinese nationals who had been working for the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) were kidnapped by unknown gunmen near Agadem in Diffa Region. They appear to still be missing and no group has claimed responsibility for their kidnapping, though Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) is active in the Diffa Region, which borders the Agadez Region. The CNPC is the main investor in the Benin-Niger oil pipeline which runs from the Agadem oil field to the port of Seme in Benin for international export. In January this year, Niger and the CNPC signed a security cooperation agreement to secure the pipeline after it had suffered attacks by armed political groups who demand the return to democratic rule and of ex-President Mohamed Bazoum who was ousted during the July 2023 coup. 

Figure 2: Map of the Niger-Benin oil pipeline. Source: China Global South Project

Kidnapping of Foreign Nationals in the Tri-Border Region

Islamic State is known to use kidnap-for-ransom (K&R) as a funding mechanism. A German national, Jörg Lange, was kidnapped on 11 April 2018, near Ayorou, Tillabéri Region, Niger by Islamic State militants. He was released after four years in captivity at the age of 63.  

Moroccan Truck Drivers Still Missing 

On 18 January 2025, four Moroccan truck drivers went missing while travelling on the road between Dori in the Sahel Region of Burkina Faso and Téra, Tillabéri Region, Niger, in the tri-border region. H24 Info reported on 2 February 2025, that a source from the Moroccan embassy in Burkina Faso told AFP that the kidnapped Moroccan nationals remained unaccounted for at that stage. According to the same source, the victims were transporting equipment intended for the Niger Electricity Company, NIGELEC, at the time of their disappearance and they were travelling "without a security escort." H24 Info also said that they had viewed an appeal by the families of the victims who said they had no news about the victims and that they had not yet returned home. This was contrary to numerous media reports that the drivers had been freed on 20 January 2025. Currently, it appears that the Moroccan citizens are still missing at the time of writing of this article. While their kidnapping has not been claimed by any group, it is possible that ISSP is behind this incident considering that the group is active in the region and that they are known to kidnap foreigners. 

Five Indian Citizens Kidnapped in Sakoira by ISSP

On 29 April 2025, Islamic State's official Nashir News Agency released a statement claiming credit for a 25 April 2025 attack in Sakoira, also located in the Tillabéri Region. The statement was accompanied by images of the attack and both the Niger army and Islamic State (in their claim of credit for the attack) reported that twelve soldiers were killed in the attack. Additionally, it has come to light that five Indian citizens were kidnapped during the attack. The kidnapping was confirmed by the local government of Jharkand State, the Indian State from where the kidnapping victims hail. Reuters said that according to security sources, the victims were working for an Indian company providing services to Niger's Kandadji dam project. 





Figure 3: Islamic State imagery of the Sakoira attack. 

JNIM Also Active in Tillabéri Region 

The situation in  Tillabéri Region is further complicated by the presence of Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM). On 27 April 2025, the group claimed credit for an attack on the same day targeting the Niger army with two explosive devices in Mossipaga, Tillabéri Region. The Niger Defence and Security Forces (FDS) confirmed that three soldiers died and three others were injured in the attack. 

On 27 February, Niger state media reported that the Integrated Operations Coordination Centre (CICO) announced that 15 terrorists were killed on 24 February 2025, following an offensive action by the FDS in Mossipaga. 

Analysis

There are numerous identical factors in the kidnappings of Claudia Abbt and Eva Gretzmacher: both worked in the humanitarian sector in Agadez Region, both were taken from their homes in the night, they are both currently being held by ISSP in Mali, and they both are elderly women from Europe. It is noteworthy that back in January 2025, Wassim Nasr, France 24’s terrorism expert, said that the local Islamic State group had made a call to locals to kidnap Westerners. This came after the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA),  said it had freed a Spanish national kidnapped by a group of bandits in Algeria. According to France 24, the kidnappers had hoped to sell him to Islamic State in Mali but were stopped before they could hand him over.  While the kidnappings of Abbt and Gretzmacher can be linked to the call by local Islamic State to kidnap Westerners, the kidnapping of the Indian citizens does not appear to align with this call because they are not Westerners. Their kidnapping could instead be a sign that ISSP in Niger is deliberately targeting foreign infrastructure workers. As for the kidnapping of the Chinese workers, they fit the criteria of being foreign infrastructure workers and were taken from a region that experiences ISWAP activity, but with their whereabouts currently unknown, it is difficult to lay the blame squarely with Islamic State. Agadez Region has in the past seen activity by armed political groups and on 26 April 2025, the leader of the the Patriotic Movement for Freedom and Justice (MPLJ), Moussa Kunai, recorded a speech, which circulated widely on social media, in which he threatened to resume attacks on Niger's infrastructure and armed forces. Back on 18 September 2024, the MPLJ claimed credit for an attack in Chirfa, Agadez Region. 


Figure 4: Screenshot of the speech by Moussa Kunai. Source: Whatsapp










Political and intelligence analyst with expertise in African Jihadism and political violence.

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