Iran's increasing engagement in Sahel seen as detrimental to regional security

NOUAKCHOTT, Mauretania -- Iran has been more actively engaged in Africa in recent months, especially in the Sahel region of western and north-central Africa, which lies between the Sahara desert and the Sudanian savanna.

Iranian drones and weapons have been used in recent conflicts in Ethiopia and Somalia, according to some reports, fuelling speculation that Iran intends to increase its arms sales to Africa.

The actions and agenda of the Islamic Republic and its ally Russia in the Sahel also have come under increased scrutiny of late -- especially since the French withdrawal from Mali -- with both accused of disrupting stability and security.

At an October 4 press conference, Moroccan foreign minister Nasser Bourita accused Iran of working through intermediaries to destabilise north and west Africa.

Bourita said Iran supports separatist and extremist groups by providing them with weapons and drones, undermining peace and security in the region.

Morocco has made the same accusations before, and in 2018 severed ties with Iran, accusing Iran-backed Lebanese Hizbullah of arming and training the separatist Polisario Front.

Both Iran and the Polisario denied the claims, the Morocco World News media outlet reported, but Morocco said it had backed its claims with extensive reports detailing meetings held in Algeria between Hizbullah and Polisario officials.

According to the Atalayar media outlet, the reports revealed the military assistance Tehran provided to the Polisario Front by Kassim Tajideen, a Lebanese businessman linked to Hizbullah.

A report just this week presented evidence that Iran was also playing a central role in a network of arms traffickers that have facilitated weapons transfers to multiple terrorist groups in the Horn of Africa.

'Taking advantage of turmoil'

Iran typically uses diplomacy and economic relations as a gateway to advance its expansionist policies, which is the approach it has chosen in Mali, Sahel analyst Mohammed al-Amin al-Dah told Al-Mashareq.

"Iran is taking advantage of the turmoil amid the fragile security situation to sell weapons and find new ground to achieve other goals, including securing energy sources and raw materials for industrial use, such as gold and uranium," he said.

Iran has had a soft-power presence in Mali for several years, represented by cultural and health-related institutions such as the Iranian Red Crescent, al-Mustafa International University and the Iranian Cultural Centre, al-Dah said.

"These institutions always have served as cover for covert activities that serve the Iranian agenda," he said.

Al-Mustafa International University, which has branches around the world, is under US sanctions for facilitating Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force (IRGC-QF) intelligence collection and recruitment efforts.

The IRGC-QF has used the university as a recruitment platform for the foreign militias it leads that are fighting on behalf of the Syrian regime, the US Treasury said in its December 8, 2020, designation.

According to al-Dah, the university also has a role in supporting a number of armed separatist groups in Burkina Faso and Central Africa.

Amid the recent tensions, Iran has intensified its activities in Mali, he said, in an apparent attempt to fill the void left by the withdrawal of France, and to take advantage of the ruling military junta's pursuit of a new direction.

Tactics to exert influence

"Iran is taking advantage of the current situation to develop new strategies for exerting influence and establishing its foothold in Mali, and more broadly in the Sahel region," said Network for Strategic Reflection on Security in the Sahel president and co-founder Jérôme Pigné.

"The Iranian intervention proves that many cards are currently being played with the emergence of new actors in the region," he said.

Iran's endeavour to win over Mali and turn it into a strategic ally should not be overlooked, Pigné said, noting that Tehran's agenda is apparent in its own statements.

A late August visit to Mali by Iranian foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian points to Iran's desire to develop closer ties with the African country.

Tehran -- like Moscow -- is trying to develop co-operation with Mali to stop the advance of insurgent groups and prevent the Malian state from slipping into the chaos that would ensue from internal conflicts and external threats.

In exchange, Bamako will also allow Tehran to take advantage of its abundant uranium and gold resources.

'Vast geography of resistance'

In meetings with African leaders, Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi has stressed that strengthening relations with Africa is a foreign policy priority for the Islamic Republic, according to the Middle East Institute (MEI).

Raisi has attempted to portray Iran "as a true friend and real partner in helping [Africa] achieve welfare, development, independence and progress", it said.

He also has sought to make it part of the Islamic Republic's "vast geography of resistance", in which it is cultivating ties with Eastern powers as well as the Global South.

"Although the Iranian authorities are still interested in the revival of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Raisi represents a resistance discourse that believes Iran has to focus on thwarting the sanctions instead of trying to lift them by means of political negotiations," MEI said in an August 2021 report.

"The focal point of this worldview is the expansion of relations with non-Western countries, and Africa plays a central role in this effort," the report said.