Bandits from the Northern Nigerian hotspots of Zamfara and Katsina states are crossing over into northern Benin, buying up property and recruiting young men. Is this the moment that the Lake Chad Basin crisis merges with the wider Sahelian one?
This development should be a wake-up call for West African states and their international partners to enhance cross-border cooperation. Violent extremists continue to outperform security responses as they defy regional relations andBenin has been affected by the Sahel conflict since 2021, when JNIM staged its first attacks.
First, is the diffusion of banditry from North West Nigeria to the border with Benin and increasingly within Benin. Northwestern Nigeria is the terrain of powerfulwith violent extremists. Nigerian bandit groups from the historical hotspots of Zamfara and Katsina states have increasingly moved to Benin since 2021.