Overview
- UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged a joint intelligence platform linking ECOWAS, the Alliance of Sahel States, Mauritania, Chad and Algeria to coordinate counter-terrorism operations.
- He warned of a potential domino effect as armed groups expand, with AFP analysis of ACLED data noting a doubling of the attack footprint since 2019 across an area twice the size of Spain and 77,000 deaths.
- ECOWAS said it is expediting deployment of its standby force, beginning with 1,650 personnel and planning to scale to 5,000 with regional and partner backing.
- Humanitarian appeals for the Sahel and Lake Chad Basin require $4.9 billion but have raised less than one quarter, with Mali’s response plan only 16% funded.
- UN figures cite about 4 million people displaced and closures of 14,800 schools and over 900 health facilities, while JNIM’s fuel blockade into Bamako forced aid cutbacks before limited resupply last week.