Armed groups across Africa’s Sahel are increasingly using Starlink satellite internet to coordinate operations, surveil targets and guide strikes in areas beyond the reach of conventional telecoms, military analysts say, citing reporting by France’s Le Monde.
The main al Qaeda-aligned coalition in the region, Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), has stepped up deadly raids in Burkina Faso and Mali. Analysts told Erem News the adoption of portable satellite internet has improved militants’ communications and intelligence collection as state control over remote territory has frayed.
Amro Diallo, a Sahel security specialist, said field reports from Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso describe militants using the service for espionage and possibly cyber operations against state institutions, compounding governments’ concerns. He added that the trend coincides with wider access to armed drones and other advanced kit seized during assaults on army bases.
Use of Starlink by Sahel militants first surfaced publicly in June 2024, when a JNIM video from Gao, northern Mali, appeared to show the device during an attack on Malian troops, analysts said.
Political commentator Mohamed Idris said the connectivity gap is undermining authorities’ pledges to restore security, urging transitional governments to craft new countermeasures to curb militants’ use of commercial satellite services.
