Islamic State – West Africa ProvinceAdministrative branch of militant groupThe Islamic State – West Africa Province (ISWAP), officially Wilāyat Ġarb Ifrīqīyā (Arabic: ولاية غرب إفريقية), meaning 'Province of West Africa', is a militant group and administrative division of the Islamic State (IS), a Salafi jihadist militant group and unrecognisedquasi-state.
Adnan Abu Walid al-SahrawiLehbib Ould Ali Ould Said Ould Yumani (Arabic: الحبيب ولد علي ولد سعيد ولد اليماني; 16 February 1973 – 17 August 2021), also known by the nom de guerreAdnan Abu Walid al-Sahrawi (Arabic: عدنان أبو وليد الصحراوي), was a SahrawiIslamist militant and the first Emir of the Islamic State – Sahel Province. BiographyAl-Sahrawi was born in Laayoune into a wealthy trading family that fled the city for refugee camps in Algeria.
Al-Mourabitoun (militant group)Al-Mourabitoun (Arabic: المرابطون, romanized: al-Murābiṭūn, lit.'The Sentinels') also called Al-Mourabitoun Battalion was an African militant jihadist organization formed by a merger between Ahmed Ould Amer, a.k.a. Ahmed al-Tilemsi's Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa, and Mokhtar Belmokhtar's Al-Mulathameen. On 4 December 2015, it joined Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM).
Islamic StateSalafi jihadist militant organisation
NigerCountry in West AfricaNiger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state bordered by Libya to the northeast, Chad to the east, Nigeria to the south, Benin and Burkina Faso to the southwest, Mali to the west and Algeria to the northwest. It covers a land area of almost 1.27 million km (490,000 mi), making it the sixth-largest country in Africa and the second-largest landlocked nation in Africa behind Chad.
MénakaMénaka (Berber: ⵎⵏⴾⴰ) is a town and urban commune in Ménaka Cercle and Ménaka Region in eastern Mali. It is the seat and the largest town in the cercle and region. The town is set amidst the rocky outcrops of the Ader Douchi hills, and is served by Ménaka Airport. As of May 2026, the town is under Malian government control, surrounded by the Islamic State – Sahel Province (ISSP).
Tillabéri RegionTillabéri (var. Tillabéry) is one of the seven regions of Niger. The capital of the region is Tillabéri. Tillabéri Region was created in 1992, when Niamey Region was split, with Niamey and its immediate hinterland becoming a new capital district enclaved within Tillabéri Region.
AnsongoAnsongo is a rural commune and small town in the Gao Region of eastern Mali. The town lies on the left bank of the Niger River 90 km south of Gao. It is the administrative center for the surrounding Ansongo Cercle. The commune covers an area of 445 square kilometers and in the 2009 census had a population of 32,709. Geography and climateAnsongo is located in the southern part of the Gao region. The rural commune of Ansongo was created on 4 November 1996.
TidermèneTidermène is a village and cercle in Ménaka Region of southeastern Mali. In the 2009 census it had a population of 5,816. Its area is approximately 29,000 square kilometers. It was previously a commune in Ménaka Cercle but was promoted to the status of a cercle when Ménaka Region was created in 2016. From 2001 to 2016 the commune of Alata was separated from Tidermène. On 12 April 2023, the town was seized by the Islamic State in the Sahel.
Salafi jihadismTransnational Sunni Islamist religious-political ideologySalafi jihadism, also known as Salafi-jihadism, jihadist Salafism and revolutionary Salafism, is a religiopolitical SunniIslamist ideology that seeks to establish a global caliphate through armed struggle. In a narrower sense, jihadism refers to the belief that armed struggle with political rivals is an efficient and theologically legitimate method of socio-political change.
Transnational organized crimeOrganized crime across national borders Transnational organized crime (TOC) is organized crime coordinated across national borders, involving groups or markets of individuals working in more than one country to plan and execute illegal business ventures. To achieve their goals, these criminal groups use systematic violence and corruption.
IslamismPolitico-religious ideologyIslamism is a range of religious and political ideological movements that believe that Islam should influence political systems. Its proponents believe Islam is innately political, and that Islam as a political system is superior to communism, liberal democracy, capitalism, and other alternatives in achieving a just, successful society.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.