UN counterterrorism official warns Daesh threat is growing across Sahel, Middle East and Afghanistan
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Summary
Acting Under‑Secretary‑General Alexander Zuev told the UN Security Council that Daesh and affiliates are becoming more resilient and expanding notably in West Africa, the Sahel and parts of the Middle East; he also highlighted dire humanitarian conditions in northeastern Syria and recent deadly attacks in Afghanistan.
Acting Under‑Secretary‑General Alexander Zuev briefed the United Nations Security Council on a secretary‑general report that warned the threat posed by Daesh and its affiliates has grown and evolved since the previous report. Zuev said the group remains multipolar and increasingly complex, with affiliates adapting their tactics, recruiting foreign fighters and exploiting new technologies.
Zuev told the Council the group "has increased steadily since the previous report," and that affiliates continue to sustain themselves through opportunistic fundraising, unlawful taxation and kidnapping for ransom. He singled out West Africa and the Sahel as areas where the group is expanding its presence and deepening regional instability.
"In the Lake Chad Basin, the Islamic State West Africa Province has further expanded its prominence," Zuev said, noting the regional implications for governance, human rights and development.
In the Middle East, he said Daesh remains active in Iraq and the Syrian Arab Republic, carrying out attacks and seeking to destabilize local authorities. Zuev warned that the security situation in northeastern Syria remains very fragile and that camps in the region host thousands—predominantly women and children—who face persistent human‑rights violations and restricted access to water, food, health care and education. He also said the withdrawal of the Syrian Democratic Forces from Alkol on January 21 has introduced new operational and humanitarian challenges.
Zuev described ISIL‑Khorasan in Afghanistan as "one of the most serious threats to the region and beyond," noting the group's capacity to rapidly replenish its ranks, including through online recruitment. He recalled the Council's recent condemnation of the Jan. 19 attack at a Kabul restaurant, which, he said, "resulted in the death of seven people and injured several others, including a child."
The report Zuev summarized was prepared by the United Nations Office of Counter‑Terrorism (UNOCT) jointly with the Counter‑Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) and the Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team, and was presented to the Council under references to resolutions 1526 and 2253 as stated in the briefing. Zuev closed by urging member states to use the General Assembly's upcoming review and the twentieth anniversary of the UN global counterterrorism strategy to reaffirm multilateral counterterrorism cooperation. "Member states have consistently demonstrated unity in rejecting terrorism in all its forms and manifestations," he said.
After Zuev concluded, the Council president thanked him and gave the floor to Natalia Garmon, the CTED executive director and assistant secretary‑general, who was introduced to present further details from the report.