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One of the most striking events during the official celebrations of the 64th anniversary of Benin’s independence was the loud cheers and salutes of the Operation Mirador contingent. These soldiers, based in northern Benin, have fought against all odds to defend the integrity of the country’s territory, sometimes at the cost of their lives. However, for their mission to be a complete success, military cooperation with all other countries in the subregion that are also suffering from the horrors of terrorism is essential.
Benin has achieved encouraging results in the fight against terrorism through Operation Mirador. Soldiers of Operation Mirador are moving back and forth across the territory with the aim of preventing incursions by armed groups and their possible descent further south. They are spread over rural areas, among which are the two large national parks of Pendjari and W, which are currently closed to tourists due to insecurity.
But they say that as long as there is still something to be done, nothing can be done. Despite all the measures taken, terrorists continue to infiltrate the territory of Benin and operate there, sometimes or often killing Beninese civilians and soldiers. We still remember the attack that took place on the night of July 25-26, which killed 12 people in Park W. In fact, the most exposed area at the moment is the western one, bordering Burkina Faso. But the border with Niger has also become a concern recently, especially since the overthrow of President Mohamed Bazoum in July 2023 and the deterioration of relations between Porto-Novo and Niamey. More than a hundred sons and daughters of Benin, civilians and soldiers, have lost their lives since the first attack in 2019.
Benin’s response
In January 2022, Benin deployed about 3,000 soldiers for border security as part of an operation called “Mirador.” He then began recruiting 5,000 additional soldiers to strengthen security in the north. These soldiers patrol Benin’s border day and night, sometimes pursuing the last strongholds of terrorists to eliminate them.
According to military sources, in pursuing the attacker to eliminate him, they even had the possibility of crossing all borders with all our neighboring countries. The Benin authorities and the defense and security forces believe that the deployment of the “Mirador” operation was an effective response to the jihadist attacks and that it has indeed achieved some good results. Since the beginning of this operation, more than a hundred suspected terrorists have been eliminated and a large amount of military equipment has been seized. However, this force has also experienced some failures, which could have been avoided if it had the possibility of working in symbiosis and synergy with the armies of neighboring countries.
Sub-regional military cooperation is indispensable
Benin is not the only country to suffer from terrorist attacks. In recent years, northern regions of Togo, Niger, Mali, Nigeria and Ghana have also suffered attacks and incursions by Islamic State and al-Qaeda militants, which have flourished in the Sahel and are seeking to descend to the south. The response to this phenomenon should be sub-regional, coordinated and concerted. The threat of terrorism in West Africa poses a major challenge to the stability and development of the region. Sub-regional military cooperation is absolutely necessary in the face of this growing threat.
Regardless of the nature of its relations with its neighbors, Benin must strive to establish military cooperation in the fight against terrorism for several reasons. First, terrorist organizations do not respect national borders. Then, the decentralized means of warfare of various countries cannot effectively confront an enemy that is always heavily armed. Finally, the pooling of skills and intelligence constitutes an important force in the fight against terrorism. Therefore, effectively confronting this phenomenon requires close coordination between the different countries of the region.
Such cooperation can pool human, material and financial resources and greatly enhance counter-terrorism capabilities. Information exchange between intelligence services of different countries is also crucial to preventing attacks and destroying terrorist networks. Joint exercises and training will make it possible to coordinate procedures and improve interoperability between the armed forces of different countries in order to keep attackers away from the sub-region.
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