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Four Moroccan Truck Drivers Kidnapped in Burkina Faso Are Released

A general view of the Moroccan capital Rabat. (File photo/AFP)
A general view of the Moroccan capital Rabat. (File photo/AFP)
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Four Moroccan Truck Drivers Kidnapped in Burkina Faso Are Released

A general view of the Moroccan capital Rabat. (File photo/AFP)
A general view of the Moroccan capital Rabat. (File photo/AFP)

Four Moroccan truck drivers who were kidnapped in West Africa over the weekend were released in Niger, officials said, according to AP.

The drivers were the latest victims of insecurity in the Sahel, an arid swath of land south of the Sahara where militant groups such as ISIS - Sahel Province have in recent years exploited local grievances to grow their ranks and expand their presence.

The four were transporting electrical equipment from Casablanca to Niamey, the capital city of Niger, and had been on the road for more than 20 days traveling the 3,000-mile (4,950-kilometer) truck route when they were reported missing on Saturday, said the secretary-general of Morocco's Transport Union and a Moroccan official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment on the kidnapping.

The Moroccan Embassy in Burkina Faso late on Monday informed the union that the four drivers had been freed and were safe in Niamey.

“They will be brought back soon,” said Echarki El Hachmi, the union's secretary-general.

Their trucks and hauls remain missing, he added.

Burkina Faso and Niger are battling extremist militant groups linked to al-Qaeda and ISIS, whose insurgencies have destabilized Sahel states in West Africa over the past decade.

A Moroccan diplomatic source earlier said the embassy was working together with Burkina Faso authorities to find the drivers.

Authorities in Burkina Faso have been organizing security convoys to escort trucks in the border area to protect against militant attacks, the source said.

El Hachmi had told Reuters that the trucks set off after waiting for a week without getting an escort.

He urged more protection in high-risk areas as the number of Moroccan trucks crossing the Sahel continues to rise.

Earlier this month, a convoy of Moroccan trucks was attacked on the Malian border with Mauritania. There were no casualties, El Hachmi said.

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Former Regime Elements, Drug Traffickers Targeted in Western Homs and Damascus Campaigns

The Anti-Narcotics Department seizes a drug depot belonging to Maher al-Assad in the Sabura area in the Damascus countryside (Ministry of Interior).
The Anti-Narcotics Department seizes a drug depot belonging to Maher al-Assad in the Sabura area in the Damascus countryside (Ministry of Interior).
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Former Regime Elements, Drug Traffickers Targeted in Western Homs and Damascus Campaigns

The Anti-Narcotics Department seizes a drug depot belonging to Maher al-Assad in the Sabura area in the Damascus countryside (Ministry of Interior).
The Anti-Narcotics Department seizes a drug depot belonging to Maher al-Assad in the Sabura area in the Damascus countryside (Ministry of Interior).

The Syrian Military Operations Administration has been pressing its security campaigns aimed at disarming former regime militia remnants and combating drug traffickers across Syria.

On Tuesday, for the third time, the administration, in collaboration with the General Security Directorate, launched a large-scale operation in western rural Homs. The campaign focused on the villages of Jabbourin Rafain, Al-Haysa, Jabbourin, Qaniyat Al-Assi, Tasnin, Kafrnan, Akrad Al-Dasniya, and their surroundings. Simultaneous campaigns were conducted in Aleppo’s Nairab district, Jaramana in the Damascus countryside, and northern Daraa.

Security sources said the operation in rural Homs targets “remnants of Assad militias who refused to surrender their weapons, arms depots, drug dealers, and traffickers,” according to an official statement from the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA). Military reinforcements were dispatched to support the campaign in the targeted areas.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said the operation in the village of Jabbourin in rural Hama marked the second such operation within a week. The observatory noted that several civilians and military personnel, including those who had reconciled with the government, were arrested. Some detainees were later released, while others remain under investigation.

Residents in rural Homs expressed significant concern about the proliferation of weapons, incidents of abductions, and the escalating fear of retribution. Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, they noted a prevailing sense of unease and insecurity, as anonymous actors exploit the current chaos to fuel tensions and instability.

The General Security Directorate in Homs has urged residents in western rural Homs villages and towns to fully cooperate with its forces and the Military Operations Administration to ensure the success of the campaign’s objectives.

In Daraa, southern Syria, the Daraa 24 network reported that the General Security Directorate carried out a raid in the city of Izraa, north of Daraa. During the operation, large quantities of weapons were seized, and warnings were issued to individuals still in possession of firearms to surrender them “to preserve the region’s security and stability.”

An earlier security operation in the Lajat region, located between the Suwayda and Daraa governorates, resulted in the arrest of 18 individuals described as former regime remnants, drug traffickers, and arms dealers. The Syrian Interior Ministry also announced the arrest of “remnant elements and members of a gang involved in the theft of weapons from a warehouse in the Mazraa project area of Damascus.”

Meanwhile, the General Security Directorate released several former regime elements in Damascus after verifying their lack of involvement in violations against the Syrian people. According to local sources cited by Syrian Television, several conscripts detained in Adra Prison in Damascus were freed on Tuesday, with additional releases expected in the coming days.

Last week, the General Security Directorate released 360 detainees, including former regime officers, out of approximately 800 people arrested as part of the Homs security campaign. Following investigations, the authorities confirmed that those individuals were not in possession of weapons and had pledged not to engage in activities against the new Syrian administration.