NEW: Extremist activity in #Africa "appears to be outpacing US, European, and African efforts to counter it" per @DoD_IG Sean O'Donnell in new report on US CT operations
#alShabaab on #Somalia remains top concern - "remains adaptive, resilient, & capable" per @USAfricaCommand
NEW: #Russia sent as many as 2,500 fighters from #Wagner Group to #Libya for January-March period, per @DoD_IG
Another approximately 3,800 #Syria|n fighters also joined the conflict in Libya during that time
#COVID19 complication US counterterror ops in #Africa - @USAfricaCommand "reported that as of the end of March, it had paused most DoD security cooperation activities across the continent" per @DoD_IG report
Per @USAfricaCommand , US launched 33 airstrikes va #alShabaab between Jan-March 2020, up from 9 in the previous 3 months
Per @DoD_IG report, the up to 3,800 #Syria|n fighters in #Libya on the payroll of #Turkey
@USAfricaCommand "observed no credible reports of [extremist] affiliated militants among the mercenary forces from Syria...fighters were likely in Libya for personal or financial reasons"
Per @DoD_IG, US counter terror ops in #Africa getting some of $71.3 billion in overseas contingency operations funding for FY 2020 but how much is unclear
"Due to the presence of multiple lines of accounting...the DoD OIG is still unable to estimate the cost of these operations"
#alShabaab "increased its attacks in the areas along the #Somalia-#Kenya border...in the Kenyan border counties of Garissa, Mandera, Wajir, and Lamu" for 1st quarter of 2020, per @DoD_IG
1,000 civilians forced to flee as a result
The observation from @USAfricaCommand comes despite reports from @syriahr that at least 130 of the #Syria|n militants in #Libya were former #ISIS or #alQaida
.@USAfricaCommand told @DoD_IG another 300 #Turkey-supported militants arrived in #Libya in April
"USAFRICOM reported that it tracks Syrian mercenaries using all available sources of intelligence" per report
Extremist groups in West #Africa, #Sahel "were neither degraded nor contained" per @DoD_IG, citing @USAfricaCommand
"USAFRICOM stated that U.S. strategy had shifted from “degrade” to “contain” due to a number of challenges in the region"
More here: voanews.com/africa/islamic…
.@DefenseIntel "assessed that #France’s deployment of additional troops & increasing regional cooperation, primarily in the tri-border region, could help reduce some of the violent extremism...but also stated there are concerns of growing anti- French sentiments" per @DoD_IG
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