In a statement adopted and published on Tuesday at the end of its 1182nd meeting held on October 27, on the report of the Chairperson of the AU Commission on the fight against terrorism in Africa, the PSC “stressed the importance of effectively combating cooperation and links between terrorists and other criminals, as well as separatists linked to transnational organized crime, in order to put an end to the logistical and financial resources that such links bring to the spread of terrorism.”

The PSC expressed its deep concern at the growing threat to peace, security and stability in Africa posed by the spread of terrorism and violent extremism across the continent, which undermines the AU’s efforts to silence the guns in Africa by 2030, and hinders progress in achieving the aspirations of the AU’s Agenda 2063 and the UN’s Agenda 2030 on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The PSC, which has condemned all acts of terrorism and extremism in the strongest terms, notes with deep concern the sustained financing of terrorist activities, in particular the growing links between terrorism and transnational organized crime, including drug trafficking, the illicit exploitation of and trade in mineral and natural resources, and illicit financial flows.