| Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb: Shadow of Terror Over the Sahel, from 2007 Contributor(s): Venter, Al J. (Author) |
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ISBN: 1526728737 ISBN-13: 9781526728739 Publisher: Pen & Sword Military OUR PRICE: $20.66 Product Type: Paperback - Other Formats Published: May 2018 |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - History | Military - General - History | Africa - General - Political Science | Terrorism |
| Dewey: 966.230 |
| LCCN: 2020445131 |
| Series: History of Terror |
| Physical Information: 0.5" H x 6.1" W x 9.1" (0.66 lbs) 128 pages |
| Themes: - Cultural Region - African |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: Insurgencies in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen and elsewhere - the majority linked to al Qaeda - are in the news on an almost daily basis. But very little surfaces about a festering insurgency that has been on the go for six years in West Africa under the acronym of AQIM, or al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. This low-level series of guerrilla conflicts is widespread and sporadic, covering an area as vast as Europe. Nigeria has been drawn into the equation because its Boko Haram insurgent faction maintains close ties with AQIM and Islamic State. For now though, the focus is on Mali where several jihadist groups - despite formal peace agreements - remain active. Involved is the French army and air force as well as the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA), the European Union Training Mission in Mali (EUTM) as well as the European Union Capacity Building Mission (EUCAP). The insurrection that fostered all this broke out early 2012 when President Fran ois Hollande announced the beginning of Operation Serval. Five hours later the first squadrons of French Gazelle helicopter gunships began attacking Islamist columns. A day later French fighter jets based in Chad, almost 2,000 kilometers away, were making sorties against rebel ground targets in northern Mali. |
Contributor Bio(s): Venter, Al J.: - Al J. Venter is a specialist military writer and has had 50 books published. He started his career with Geneva's Interavia Group, then owners of International Defence Review, to cover military developments in the Middle East and Africa. Venter has been writing on these and related issues such as guerrilla warfare, insurgency, the Middle East and conflict in general for half a century. He was involved with Jane's Information Group for more than 30 years and was a stringer for the BBC, NBC News (New York) as well as London's _Daily Express_ and _Sunday Express_. He branched into television work in the early 1980s and produced more than 100 documentaries, many of which were internationally flighted. His one-hour film, _Africa's Killing Fields_ (on the Ugandan civil war), was shown nationwide in the United States on the PBS network. Other films include an hour-long programme on the fifth anniversary of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, as well as _AIDS: The African Connection_, nominated for China's Pink Magnolia Award. His last major book was _Portugal's Guerrilla Wars in Africa_, nominated in 2013 for New York's Arthur Goodzeit military history book award. It has gone into three editions, including translation into Portuguese. |