Source: WBEZ's Worldview

The turmoil in northern Mali and southern Algeria may be an unpleasant harbinger of things to come. Speaking on WBEZ’s Worldview, Anouar Boukhars suggested that it is likely that there will continue to be incidents like the recent kidnapping of 45 hostages from an Algerian gas field. “This is something we should get used to,” noted Boukhars. Indeed, following the French intervention in northern Mali a host of terrorist groups vowed revenge and reprisal against not just the French, but the West in general and any African countries sending troops into Mali, he added The United States and other Western allies would have preferred a consortium led by west African forces, said Boukhars. However, the French intervention escalated the violence and provided a rallying point for the various disparate terrorist groups in the region. Ultimately, Boukhars argued that there can be no military solution to the conflict, suggesting that the conflict is political in nature and will need to be addressed through political and diplomatic measures.