{"id":6318,"date":"2025-12-24T12:09:03","date_gmt":"2025-12-24T12:09:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cisanewsletter.com\/?p=6318"},"modified":"2025-12-24T12:09:05","modified_gmt":"2025-12-24T12:09:05","slug":"jnims-strategy-of-psychological-and-economic-strangulation-lessons-neighbouring-states-of-central-sahel-can-take-note","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cisanewsletter.com\/index.php\/jnims-strategy-of-psychological-and-economic-strangulation-lessons-neighbouring-states-of-central-sahel-can-take-note\/","title":{"rendered":"JNIM\u2019s Strategy of Psychological and Economic Strangulation: Lessons Neighbouring States of Central Sahel Can Take Note"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The insurgency in the Sahel, primarily spearheaded by the al-Qaeda-linked Jama\u2019at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), has entered a deeply unsettling phase. Moving past the costly and often unsustainable strategy of physically seizing and holding remote territories, the group is now deploying a sophisticated form of economic and psychological warfare aimed squarely at undermining the authority of the State and its grip on urban centres (Security Council Report, 2025; Responsible Statecraft, 2025).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This strategic evolution demands immediate, integrated responses from regional authorities, particularly those in coastal West Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Playbook: Control Without Occupation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The recent fuel blockade imposed on the Malian capital, Bamako, is a perfect case study. JNIM has demonstrated that massive civilian suffering and economic paralysis can be achieved from a distance, without deploying a single fighter into the city. This strategy prioritises leveraging civilian dependency and state fragility (Africa Defense Forum, 2025; MEF Online, 2025):<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  1. Economic Strangulation:<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    By targeting and interdicting vital supply convoys\u2014like the fuel trucks destined for Bamako from neighbouring coastal states\u2014JNIM showcases the State’s inability to guarantee basic essential services (Security Council Report, 2025; Texas Public Radio, 2025). This engineered scarcity, leading to school and university closures although subsequently reopened, inflicts maximum social and economic pain and is a powerful tool for eroding public confidence (Africa Defense Forum, 2025). They also attack major trade corridors and industrial sites to diminish state revenue while bolstering their own financial base (The Soufan Center, 2025).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    1. Shadow Governance through Social Dictates:<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      Alarmingly, JNIM is successfully imposing its will on the private sector and daily life of the ordinary citizenry. The group\u2019s dictates in the transport sector and explicit threats against companies perceived as aiding the military demonstrate an effective form of extra-judicial corporate regulation (Africa Defense Forum, 2025). This establishes a shadow authority that dictates the terms of operation in vast areas, undermining the State’s monopoly on legitimate authority (CSIS, 2021).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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      1. Psychological War – Controlling the Narrative:<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

        JNIM\u2019s rhetoric assures the public that their fight is solely against the State. By controlling the flow of goods and setting the conditions for a return to normalcy, the group seizes the narrative of the urban dweller’s sufferance. This fosters a psychological detachment from the state, as the population perceives the insurgents as the primary influence on their daily reality (Africa Defense Forum, 2025).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Financial Emboldenment: The Interplay on Kidnapping<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

        The successful negotiation of an exorbitant $50 million ransom and a prisoner exchange for three foreigners, including a member of the UAE royal family, represents a major strategic victory and financial boost for JNIM (AL-Monitor, 2025; Stratfor, 2025). This “economic jihad” makes kidnapping a pillar of their strategy (AL-Monitor, 2025).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        This liquid capital is critical:<\/p>\n\n\n\n