US Report: “Daesh” And “Al Qaeda” Have No Organizational Capacity To Carry Out Terrorist Attacks In Algeria

 The “Middle East Institute”, based in Washington, said the “jihadist” threat is not new to the Maghreb region. However, the adverse repercussions of the “Arab uprisings” in 2011 radically altered the political and security environment of North Africa. Countries such as Egypt, Libya and Tunisia have witnessed an increase in deaths stemming from “jihadist attacks”, it noted.

Other countries, such as Algeria and Morocco, have witnessed fewer deleterious impacts. Despite the differences, the Institute asserts that threats are continuing and are many, including from local “jihadist” cells already stabilized and are abetted by those established within other terrorist groups operating in the Sahel, such as “AQIM”.

The Middle East Institute pointed in its  report to the operations carried out by the extremist groups associated with terrorists of “Al-Qaeda” or the “Daesh” organizations in the Arab Maghreb countries: including Egypt, Libya, Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco and the future of the war between the governments of these countries and those nefarious groups, noting that the specter of the so-called “Jihad” is chasing the Maghreb countries,”.

The report issued of late, confirmed that Algeria has more sophisticated and more efficient counterterrorism tactics than other Maghreb countries.

The report described Algeria as a “country with a long history of “jihadist fighting” and confirmed a steady decline in deaths as a result. “Deaths dropped from 153 in 2009 to only 9 in 2016,” according to the report.

 “Algeria has maintained a low level of “jihadist” activity through tough and potent counterterrorism responses in 1994, as the Algerian authorities also adopted conciliatory methods, including a truce, a national reconciliation process, demobilization, rehabilitation programs, and an opportunity for former misguided “jihadists” to talk about their experiences, while providing significant investments to ensure the country’s sustainable development.

The State remained exercising tight control over the religious level, while promoting major investments in housing, jobs, health, infrastructure and youth policies. “

The Middle East Institute’s report also stressed that the Algerian authorities “worked to meet the basic needs of their population, the state restored confidence and legitimacy, while the local “jihadist” groups were deprived of what was in the past, their local human strength.”

Today, the “jihadist” threat in Algeria has become largely fragmented, as terrorist groups such as “Daesh” or “al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb” have very limited possibilities to carry out major terrorist operations in the country.”

“The mutual lack of trust and cooperation in the fight against the terrorism scourge and in the security file among Maghreb countries complicates the hideous face of such terrorist threats, so the security of the region can become more dangerous,” it said, stressing that fighting against the terrorism plague is long.

“Libya, Tunisia and Egypt saw increases in armed terrorist attacks after the Arab unrest in 2011,” the report noted to this effect.

 “Before 2011, there were no killings in Libya because of hovering “jihadi” attacks, but the fall of Muammar Gaddafi’s regime and the ensuing outbreak of the civil war there altered the situation dramatically”, it added.