West Africa suffered 1,800 terror attacks in first half of 2023
by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has told the UN Security Council that, in the first half of this year alone, West Africa suffered more than 1,800 terror attacks which killed 4,593 people, the Associated Press reports.
Burkina Faso suffered the most deaths from terrorism during this period, losing 2,725 lives between January-June 2023, AP reports.
In a statement to the UNSC, Omar Touray, president of the 15-nation ECOWAS Commission, said the terror attacks have resulted in more than just killings, with half a million people being forced to flee their homes to escape the violence; nearly 6.2 million have been internally displaced, AP reports.
Emphasizing the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the region, Touray said 30 million people are in need of food aid, AP reports. Touray warned that number could rise to 42 million if appropriate action if the international community fails to take adequate action.
The UNSC was further briefed by Leonardo Santos Simão of the UN office for West Africa, who said the security situation in the central Sahel has deteriorated further, “with multiple attacks against civilians and defense and security forces,” AP reports. Simão called on the UNSC to take “robust and decisive” action in addressing the crisis.