Government Refutes Claim Ghana Is Being Used As A Rear Logistical Base By Jihadists

• The government has dismissed reports that jihadists are using the country's northern sector as a covert logistical base
• The rebuttal was in reaction to a Reuters report which claimed that jihadists operating in the Sahel would come to Ghana to refuel, get medical treatment and return to Burkina Faso
• The government assured Ghanaians that it has put in place enough security measures to stop the advance of the jihadists
• YEN.com.gh spoke to foreign policy and security analyst Adib Saani about the terrorist threat in Ghana

The Akufo-Addo administration has denounced claims that Islamist militants from Burkina Faso are using parts of northern Ghana as covert logistical and medical support bases.

The government’s rebuttal follows a Reuters report which suggested that Islamist militants were leveraging Ghanaian territory to sustain their insurgency in Burkina Faso.

Reuters had reported that several Ghanaian security officials and diplomats had confirmed that the insurgents were stocking up on fuel, food and explosives and getting their injured hospital care in Ghana before returning to Burkina Faso to continue their insurgency.

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The Netherlands Institute of International Relations, in a recent report, even alleged that it appears that Ghana may have accepted a de facto non-aggression pact with JNIM, the pro-al Qaeda group occupying more than half of Burkina Fso’s territory.

Addressing the claims on Citi FM on Friday, October 25, 2024, the government spokesperson on security, Palgrave Boakye-Danquah, dismissed the allegations.

He said Reuters’ claims were unfounded and baseless.

He explained that primarily, the cross-border activities between Ghana and Burkina Faso are trade-oriented and very legitimate.

Boakye-Danquah emphasised that Ghnana’s government has been coordinating with various security agencies to ensure the country’s northern borders are secure and not infiltrated.

He said monitoring is still ongoing along the country’s nearly 400-mile border with Burkina Faso, and security agencies have been advised to remain vigilant in anticipation of any attacks from jihadists.

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Palgrave Boakye-Danquah assured Ghanaians that the government was committed to upholding the country’s stability and citizens’ safety amidst the threat from the north.

Expert says threat of attack very real

In an interview with YEN.com.gh, Saani Adib, a foreign policy and security analyst, said Ghanaians ought to be worried about the threat of terrorist attacks in the country.

He said the country's porous borders mean that terrorists go in and out of the country without getting detected.

He said despite security services working assiduously to stop the terrorists from entering Ghana, more needs to be done.

"I think there's still a lot more to be done. It is unfortunate that the See Something, See Something campaign hasn't yielded any major results. I must say, I mean, it's been a complete failure because of the lack of collaboration with civil society and other important players on the ground.

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"But then, notwithstanding, there's still a threat of terrorists engaged in economic activities, such as illegal mining, cattle rustling, exchange of forex and the rest to fund the terrorist activities in Ghana and beyond.

"As a matter of fact, Ghana being a logistics hub is still a major board of contention because there are some reports that indicated that certain logistics were impounded in Mali, in Burkina Faso, only for investigations to reveal that they came from Ghana.

"Our mining sector, especially also the quarry sector who use dynamites, how do we regulate it? I mean, when it comes from the port and we take it all the way to the mining or quarry site, how do we ensure that they use what they tell us they used and we don't have some of them getting leaked and falling into the hands of dangerous elements."

Togolese flee to Ghana over terrorist attack

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Over 200 residents of three border communities fled Togo to Ghana on the evening of March 5, 2024, following a suspected terrorist attack at Nagudi in the neighbouring country.

The Togolese communities were attacked by about 10 armed men on motorbikes.

Joy News reported that about eight people were suspected to have been killed during the attack.

Following the incident, residents of Jangbande, Tambeng, and Tantara 2 abandoned their villages and fled to safety in Bunkpurugu, Wenchike, and Yunyoo in Ghana.

Six die in attack

YEN.com.gh reported that six people have been reported dead in another attack in Bawku in the Upper East Region.

Gunmen opened fire on a bus which was travelling to a market in the nearby Binduri district.

On Wednesday, January 17, 2024, unidentified gunmen attacked and killed two persons in the township.

Source: YEN.com.gh