Raab warns of increasing terrorism threat in Africa

At a meeting of the Global Coalition against Daesh in Rome, the Foreign Secretary will announce new UK funding to fight the growing threat of terrorism in West Africa.

Dominic Raab is expected to commit £12.6 million to support efforts to counter the group in the Lake Chad Basin, which covers north-east Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger and Chad. The funds will be used to support both the regionally-led military fight against Daesh, and projects encouraging its fighters to leave the terrorist group.

The meeting will see foreign ministers from more than 45 countries discuss deepening cooperation to combat ISIS and its affiliate terrorist groups, including emerging threats across the African continent.

As part of his attendance, Raab will urge Coalition partners to come together to tackle this pressing threat and target the longer-term drivers of terrorism, both in the Middle East and in areas of Africa where attacks from ISIS-linked groups have been growing.

Raab said: “Two years since Daesh’s territorial defeat in Iraq and Syria, the threat of Daesh and its hateful ideology has not gone away. Worryingly it continues to grow in Africa which is why we must work with our Coalition partners to fight its poisonous propaganda on all fronts. We stand shoulder to shoulder with our African partners to tackle the growing threat from Daesh-linked groups across Africa, particularly in the Lake Chad Basin.”