As insurgents move away from face-to-face combat with armed forces, they are turning to commercial drones as tools for launching assaults.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

Terrorist groups operating in the Central Sahel are increasingly turning to commercially available drones as a new weapon of war, a shift in strategy aimed at bypassing the military superiority of regional armed forces. According to a government statement released after a series of attacks in western Mali on July 1, the use of kamikaze drones has become a growing trend among armed groups across Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger.

Initially used for surveillance and propaganda, drones have now been adapted to drop improvised explosive devices and conduct suicide missions. This evolution marks a turning point in asymmetric warfare in the region, inflicting growing casualties and structural damage while instilling fear in security forces.

The tactic appears to have been inspired by similar drone deployments in conflicts in Libya and the Middle East. It now features prominently in the operations of separatist and extremist groups across the Sahel.

In Burkina Faso, more than a dozen suicide drone attacks have occurred since February. In May, Jama’at Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM) launched drone-led assaults on Djibo and Diapaga. Meanwhile, in Niger, the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS) used kamikaze drones for the first time on May 25, targeting an army base in Eknewan near the Malian border and killing 64 soldiers.

In Mali, the Azawad Liberation Front used drones in an April attack on a Malian military command and the Wagner Group’s base in Léré, southwest of Timbuktu. They had earlier deployed similar tactics during the battle of Tinzaouaten in Kidal region in July 2024, resulting in significant casualties for Malian and Wagner forces. Additional drone strikes were reported in Goundam and Léré in September and October 2024, with another attempted drone attack on May 5 near Amachache, close to the Algerian border.

Militant groups are reportedly modifying off-the-shelf civilian drones by adding improvised launching mechanisms, allowing them to carry out more targeted and destructive attacks. These drones—often sold in local markets for agricultural or media purposes—are inexpensive, easy to conceal, and hard to track due to porous borders and weak regional oversight.

Despite increased investment in military equipment by Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, their inability to detect or intercept these small and low-flying drones has created a major vulnerability. Security forces are increasingly being ambushed at camps, checkpoints, and convoys—raising the urgency for anti-drone defenses, even if costly.

By mirroring the drone warfare tactics of national armies—such as the deployment of Turkish-made Bayraktar drones—armed groups have not only adapted to modern combat but are exploiting gaps in the region’s defense systems.

The humanitarian toll is equally troubling. Civilians in these conflict zones face rising threats of indiscriminate violence, with drone strikes exacerbating already fragile security and displacement crises.

On May 22, the Alliance of Sahel States—comprising Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger—along with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), committed to greater cooperation in combating terrorism. Experts suggest this should include regulation of commercial drone sales and use, possibly through the Wassenaar Arrangement, which restricts the export of dual-use technologies.

While military solutions are critical, analysts stress the need for non-kinetic responses, such as promoting defections among insurgents and addressing the economic and social conditions that fuel extremism.

According to Hassane Koné and Fahiraman Rodrigue Koné of the ISS Regional Office for West Africa and the Sahel, the increasing reliance on drones by non-state actors represents a dangerous escalation—one that demands both immediate countermeasures and long-term strategic responses to prevent further destabilisation of the Sahel.

”NIVONEWS REPORTS”