Africa has emerged as the world’s most active terrorism theatre, with more than two-thirds of Islamic State’s global activity taking place on the continent, according to a new report by the United States House Committee on Homeland Security.
The report, released on Thursday ahead of the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks, said seven of the 10 countries with the highest number of terrorism-related deaths were in Africa.
It noted that despite the growing jihadist threat on the continent, resources from the United States and its partners remained limited, while intelligence coverage was uneven.
“The shift of jihadist activity toward Africa presents a strategic dilemma.
“With over two-thirds of ISIS’s global activity occurring on the continent and seven of the ten countries with the highest deaths linked to terrorism located there, Africa has become the world’s most active terrorism theater. Yet U.S. and partner resources remain limited, and intelligence coverage is uneven,” the committee said in the report.
The committee also said the changing character of terrorism had forced the US to reconsider how threats are identified and prioritised, pointing to the expansion of the Foreign Terrorist Organization list to cover cartels, criminal networks and extremist groups with varying ideologies.
It further warned that the growing threat from lone actors and “inspired attackers” required a change in counterterrorism strategy, moving away from concentrating mainly on organisations towards preventing individual acts.
“The rise of lone actors and inspired attackers requires a shift from organization-centric counterterrorism to behavior-centric prevention,” the report said.
According to the committee, the distinction between domestic terrorism, hate crimes and foreign-inspired extremism had also created difficulties in both prosecuting and preventing such threats.
The report identified the combination of terrorism and cyber capabilities as another emerging concern, warning that traditional counterterrorism measures were no longer sufficient to address the evolving threat landscape.
The committee also raised concerns over increasingly sophisticated cyber threats from nation states, saying such actors now possess capabilities comparable to intelligence services and military organisations.
“In cyberspace, the United States is no longer confronting only individual hackers seeking money or notoriety,” the report said.
“It now faces sustained campaigns carried out by nation states with the resources, patience, and capabilities of intelligence services and military organizations.”
It added that organisations now had significantly more systems, devices, applications and third-party services to protect, increasing the complexity of cybersecurity.
The report said artificial intelligence was accelerating changes in cybersecurity by helping defenders process large volumes of data, detect unusual behaviour, identify vulnerabilities, produce defensive code and strengthen the cyber workforce.
However, it warned that the same technology could also be exploited by malicious actors.
The committee also highlighted persistent concerns over border security, screening and vetting. It said improvements in non-intrusive inspection technology, including backscatter radiation scanners, had enhanced cargo screening and safety but warned that the large volume of goods entering the US increased the possibility of dangerous contraband going undetected.
It further said suspected terrorist groups, transnational criminal organisations, human-smuggling networks and foreign non-state actors were increasingly using commercially available encryption, telecommunications and financial technologies to conceal and coordinate illicit operations.
The committee said improved security measures along the US-Mexico border had also encouraged some transnational criminal organisations to redirect activities towards the US-Canada border.
“While the Southwest border has rightly attracted the most attention from policymakers and the public alike over the last several years, recent border security improvements have also prompted TCOs to shift their efforts to the Northern border,” the report said.
The committee made 23 recommendations to Congress and the executive branch, covering areas including intelligence sharing, counterterrorism, aviation security, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, border security, emergency preparedness and biodefence.
Among the recommendations were improved information sharing between federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, updated definitions of security threats, increased awareness of emerging terrorist tactics and organisations, and additional resources for northern border security.
It also called for the full implementation of a biometric entry-exit system, wider use of non-intrusive inspection technology, risk-based AI cybersecurity standards for critical infrastructure and stronger international partnerships.
The committee urged Congress and the executive branch to act quickly and implement the recommendations on a bipartisan basis.
Committee Chairman Andrew R. Garbarino, a Republican representing New York, said the US had made significant progress in strengthening national security since the 9/11 attacks but stressed that vigilance remained necessary as threats continued to evolve.
“Twenty-five years later, significant progress has been made towards strengthening our national security and ensuring we never again allow such an attack to be perpetrated against the United States,” Garbarino said in the report’s preface.
“This no-fail mission requires persistent vigilance and adaptation to keep pace with the contemporary threat environment.”
The report was released as the US prepares to commemorate 25 years since the September 11 attacks, which claimed nearly 3,000 lives.
The committee said its assessment was designed to review security improvements made since the attacks while identifying areas where further action was required.
