Interactive graphic: Salafi-jihadi ecosystem in the Sahel

Al Qaeda– and Islamic State–linked groups are working together and strengthening in West Africa’s Sahel region, which includes Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger. They have common objectives to transform society into their image, informed by the Salafi-jihadi ideology. The groups active in the Sahel today — Jama’a Nusrat al Islam wa al Muslimeen (JNIM), the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISGS), and Ansar al Islam — share histories, ethnic ties, and relationships that facilitate their coordination. JNIM unified four al Qaeda–linked groups in March 2017 that had historical connections to al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. In May 2015, ISGS splintered from al Murabitoun, one of the groups that joined JNIM. The network these groups form is a unique ecosystem of terror.

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This graphic depicts the Salafi-jihadi ecosystem in the Sahel, including the histories of the current operational groups and the relationships that run between the groups and to al Qaeda and Islamic State groups globally. Click on a group for more information.

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Having issues viewing the graphic on your mobile device? Check out the desktop version.