In Benin, terrorist activities observed in some southern regions
On Friday, July 4, 2025, the city of Lokossa hosted the official presentation of the military drill “Operation Shield”. Led by Lieutenant Colonel Adanmansou Valère, this large-scale operation, led by the National Guard, aims to reinforce security in the departments of Zou, Couffo, and Mono, recently identified as areas sensitive to the rise of armed terrorist groups.
During his speech, the director of the exercise painted a worrying picture of the security situation in Benin and the West African region. According to him, the resurgence of attacks and the expansion of networks affiliated with Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State now directly threaten Beninese territory. Several recent events, including the intensification of terrorist activities signaled by intelligence services and targeted attacks against law enforcement forces, illustrate this new context.
During the month of March 2025, the national intelligence services revealed an intensification of terrorist activity in the departments of Mono, Couffo, Zou, Plateau, and Ouémé. These activities are the doings of mobile armed cells affiliated with a transborder terrorist group, some of whose elements originate from the north of the country, infiltrated through clandestine channels, across the lianas and dense forests of central Benin. Several other triggering events led to the decision to launch this large-scale operation.
Between May and June 2025, the departments of Mono, Couffo, Zou, Plateau, and Ouémé experienced a multiplication of incidents. Patrols attacked, suspect convoys intercepted, and attacks against Republican police posts. These facts, combined with the infiltration of armed groups coming from the north of the country, justify the mobilization of a large-scale military operation.
Thus, on May 27, 2025, a joint patrol of the National Armed Forces was ambushed in the Tobi-Kpèkpè district. On June 5, 2025, there was the interception of a suspicious convoy near Apomè, thus revealing imminent offensive preparation. On June 12, 2025, an attack on a Republican police post in Kétou resulted in the death of a policeman and another injured. In addition, there is a spread of rumors of forced recruitment and goat trafficking in the Azovè zone, at the level of surrounding municipalities.
“Operation Shield” therefore provides for coordinated maneuvers on several fronts for the security of strategic routes, the dismantling of mobile terrorist cells, and increased surveillance of forest areas likely to harbor hostile groups. For Lieutenant Colonel Valère, it’s about restoring a climate of trust among the populations, while preventing terrorist groups from extending their influence to the south of Benin.
Parallel to field operations, the authorities have stressed the importance of intelligence and collaboration with local communities, essential for preventing the forced recruitment of young people and the development of illicit trafficking in border areas.
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