This report written by James Cockayne, Jason Ipe, and Alistair MillarCenter through the Center of Global Counterterrorism Cooperation (2010) deals with counter-terrorism strategy in North Africa.
“The states of North Africa have each had to confront their own unique, in some cases defining, struggles against terrorism. Since 2001, however, the threat in the subregion has evolved from a network of nationally based organizations focused on the overthrow of local regimes to an increasingly regionalized and externally oriented network of organizations, connecting local grievances to global procurement, recruiting, and financing networks. Although North African regimes have developed robust counterterrorism capabilities, the cross-border cooperation essential to effectively countering these more recent, transnational threats remains minimal. Part of a larger project by the Center on Global Counterterrorism Cooperation to support implementation of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy and help stimulate more effective subregional counterterrorism cooperation in North Africa, this report provides an overview of the evolving threat in North Africa and analyzes how states inthe subregion working with external partners, including the United Nations, European Union (EU) and United States, can improve subregional counterterrorism-related cooperation. In particular, this reportargues that because of its universal membership and distance from the politics of the region, the UnitedNations can play a unique role in catalysing this cooperation.”