Untitled Document

This monograph, published by the Institute for Security Studies and funded by the Norwegian Government, examines the intersection of terrorism, organized crime, and human rights in Africa. It analyzes the impact of the September 11 attacks on the continent, the legal frameworks provided by the OAU (now African Union) and the United Nations, and the specific operational and legislative responses of South Africa and Algeria.

• The 1999 OAU Convention on the Prevention and Combating of Terrorism (Algiers Convention) provides a comprehensive definition of a terrorist act, though it explicitly excludes armed struggles for liberation or self-determination conducted according to international law.
• There is a strong link between international terrorism and transnational organized crime, including arms trafficking, drug markets, and money laundering, which provide the practical means (finance, weapons, and logistics) for terrorist activities.
• The UN Security Council Resolution 1373, adopted under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, is binding for all states and mandates the criminalization of terrorism financing, the freezing of bank accounts, and the implementation of effective border controls.
• African states face a dilemma in balancing national security needs against the protection of human rights, specifically regarding the risk that anti-terrorism laws may be used to suppress political opposition or justify detention without trial.
• In Algeria, terrorism from 1992 to 2000 resulted in an estimated 100,000 deaths and one million victims, characterized by a 'genocidal' movement involving the Armed Islamic Group (GIA) and later the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC).
• The Algerian conflict was influenced by the return of 'Afghan Algerians'—soldiers who had trained in Afghanistan during the Soviet-Afghan war—who formed the core of the terrorist movements in the early 1990s.
• South Africa responded to urban terrorism in Cape Town (specifically by the group Pagad) through a series of joint police and defense operations: Recoil, Saladin, Good Hope, Crackdown, and Lancer.
• A proposed South African Anti-Terrorism Bill sought to consolidate security laws but faced criticism for its broad definition of terrorism and provisions allowing detention for interrogation for up to 14 days.
• International law prohibits the 'refoulement' of refugees to states where they risk torture, a principle upheld by the South African Constitutional Court in the case of Khalfan Khamis Mohamed, who was illegally expelled to the US facing the death penalty.
• The Algiers Convention and other regional agreements emphasize the 'extradite or prosecute' principle, requiring states to either extradite a suspected terrorist or submit the case to their own competent authorities.

APA

Institute for Security Studies (n.d.). Untitled Document. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/Mono74.pdf

Chicago

Institute for Security Studies. Untitled Document. n.d. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/Mono74.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Institute for Security Studies |title=Untitled Document |url=https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/Mono74.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{instituteforsecuritystudiesnduntitled, author = {{Institute for Security Studies}}, title = {{Untitled Document}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, url = {https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/Mono74.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }