African securityAfrican parliaments lead the continent's fight against weapons of mass destruction
Jihadist literature has, for a while, called for the acquisition of weapons of mass destruction — encouraging the production of ricin, botulinum, and sarin. The surge in terrorist acts and violent extremism on the continent should underscore, for all African states, the urgent need to actively prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction to non-state actors. It also confirms the relevance of UN Security Council resolution 1540
On 18 February, Moroccan police reportedly found chemical or biological agents while raiding a safe house linked to ISIS in the province of El Jadida, on the Atlantic coast. It is presumed that the agents, possibly toxins, were intended for terrorist purposes.
Investigations are currently underway, led by the Moroccan Ministry of Interior’s Direction Générale de la Surveillance du Territoire. Official information remains scarce, but if confirmed, the discovery of a terrorist plot using chemical or biological weapons would mark a new milestone as extremists resort to more lethal and more devastating weapons, to spread violence with maximum casualties and the highest impact.
This development is not a surprise. Jihadist literature has, for a while, called for the acquisition of weapons of mass destruction — encouraging the production of ricin, botulinum, and sarin (an example of this can be found in the third edition of the magazine disseminated by al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.)
The discovery in El Jadida serves as a strong reminder of a rapid surge in terrorist acts and violent extremism on the continent. It should underscore, for all African states, the urgent need to actively prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction to non-state actors. It also confirms the relevance of UN Security Council resolution 1540.
Resolution 1540 is a key non-proliferation and counter-terrorism instrument, which obliges all states to refrain from providing any kind of support to non-state actors involved in proliferation activities. It also requires states to adopt effective laws to criminalize proliferation activities, and to establish controls over equipment, materials and technology that could be diverted for proliferation purposes.
Resolution 1540 completes and reinforces a global latticework of instruments such as the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, the Chemical Weapons Convention, and the Biological Weapons Convention. It also complements counter-terrorism conventions such as the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material; and the International Convention on the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism.
The resolution garners a high level of support on the African continent. Conversely in their implementation efforts, African states benefit from the support provided by the African Union (AU), the UN Regional Center for Peace and Disarmament in Africa (UNREC), and the 1540 Committee and its group of experts. Within their respective mandates, these key partners assist in identifying implementation gaps and mobilizing the resources that states need to effectively implement resolution 1540.
