Four Moroccan truck drivers have gone missing while traveling through the volatile border region between Burkina Faso and Niger, according to the Moroccan embassy in Burkina Faso and a Moroccan transport union.
The drivers were part of a convoy of three trucks, one carrying a spare driver, traveling without an escort from Dori in Burkina Faso to Tera in Niger. This area is notorious for jihadist activity, posing significant risks to travelers.
Both Burkina Faso and Niger, governed by military juntas, are grappling with Islamist militant groups linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State. These insurgencies have destabilized the Sahel region in West Africa over the past decade.
The Moroccan embassy in Burkina Faso confirmed that it is working closely with local authorities to locate the missing drivers. Authorities in Burkina Faso have been organizing security convoys to escort trucks through high-risk border areas in an effort to prevent militant attacks.
However, the missing convoy departed without waiting for an escort after a week of delays, according to Echarki El Hachmi, Secretary General of Morocco’s transporters’ union. The trucks, carrying infrastructure equipment, had left Casablanca weeks ago bound for Niger.
El Hachmi called for increased protection for transporters operating in high-risk areas, as the number of Moroccan trucks traveling through the Sahel continues to grow.
“This is not an isolated incident. Earlier this month, a convoy of Moroccan trucks was attacked on the Malian border with Mauritania, though fortunately, there were no casualties,” El Hachmi noted.
The disappearance highlights the dangers faced by commercial drivers operating in the Sahel, where militant threats and insufficient security measures put lives and cargo at risk.
