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US Exercise Focuses on Role of Police, Courts in West Africa Counterterrorism

Anita Powell

   JOHANNESBURG - About 80 law enforcement and judiciary officers
   participated in last week's inaugural West Africa Joint Operations
   regional exercise -- a small figure compared to the thousands of
   personnel who sometimes take part in military-led counterterrorism
   exercises.

   But this modest exercise could have a big impact against terrorism,
   said Julie Cabus, deputy assistant secretary and assistant director of
   the training directorate in the U.S. Bureau of Diplomatic Security.

   For this exercise, Cabus said, trainers and participants examined the
   complex systems of courts and law enforcement in several West African
   countries to learn how to fairly, quickly and justly prosecute terror
   cases.

   "We focused on gathering timely, accurate evidence while working with
   judicial authorities to ensure adherence to local laws," she said.
   "Goals of the exercise included enhancing the investigative capacity
   and capability of units focused on terrorism cases in Burkina Faso,
   Mali and Niger, ensuring investigations adhere to the rule of law and
   the principles of human rights, and facilitating regional cross-border
   cooperation by sharing best practices."

   Cabus's agency is responsible for securing diplomacy and protecting the
   integrity of U.S. travel documents. Because of its global mandate, the
   service has the largest geographic reach of any U.S. federal law
   enforcement agency, with more than 270 offices outside of the U.S.

   And Michael C. Gonzales, deputy assistant secretary of the Bureau of
   African Affairs, says these small, targeted efforts form an important
   part of the State Department's counterterrorism strategy in West
   Africa's Sahel region, which include the countries who participated in
   the exercise: Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, All three of those nations
   have seen a rise in terrorist activity in recent years.

   "Addressing the challenges in the Sahel will require security
   interventions," he said. "But ultimately, the answer to the challenges
   of the Sahel lies in addressing the crisis of legitimacy and delivering
   governance and services to marginalized communities. And so this West
   African joint operation exercise that we saw last month is a really
   good example of the U.S. partnering with our partner countries in the
   region to develop their capacity so that they can gain greater
   confidence of their public by effectively delivering accountability and
   follow up to the security threats that are posed to communities."

   Cabus added that her bureau has been asked to look at running a similar
   exercise in Southern Africa, in the coastal nation of Mozambique, where
   violent extremists linked to Islamic State militants have recently
   stepped up their deadly attacks.