Groups linked to al Qaeda and the Islamic State are expanding in Africa and gaining control of gold mines <http://l.ranenetwork.com/wf/click?upn=bF0YxMxX-2Fcb0Z-2BoslcRaT0xpjWncOihFL8Kuu-2F8L-2FFCgtW0NpYrn1DGxK-2BQ4FN5NjvF-2BPQXFzCw6JsnACxieiS34eeEaxLhIeqnGqpgDitJag0p4kjRt-2BnUrBk46fi7c_mWlsQqCrp-2FzztTA70tnsIRIstzV2oe5LcVnwFoOpzKQN2KILYmijYYaUiF8Ddf4uiVvwXwHcrQcaNWKlWpNR6j0ibfRy1aMnVx8J2mjTP8bG7kHOGDsEUzPXhS8t7-2FbjLSijBQFT4AN-2FE9x48FFMH6igPh0ggdQbeFkH1zTM1zY9-2BI327ZxC-2BVeTbHzQwfiAAN5gu22jcAoxcM-2Bmb2cIWKTlOtegzU3I73MP71kxDgrnzUNQcotS7npqLemnPficIoucIphZembU87oUqd-2F6rS2wfYnRtwvT9yb3pnL-2FRwQY-2BSt8UlFn7JXeDGukYClJgQqo7qPTOS6u-2ByOagneaJKJrZSXyREs3fR-2B8oCCiaj2138GH5Kax95o0lewcg5anrC4ZptgQEyytFroCLIfiVQCxMaswOFSxMiXxOlyIQTkopMmpSZw8RNu7i8BBcvmMqSNft9SedlADM-2BNMXwDfeQ-3D-3D> , *Reuters* reports. The jihadists are attacking industrial operations, and tapping the $2 billion informal gold trade in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, which is largely out of state control. The mines are a hideout and a source of two vital supplies — funds with which to recruit new members and buy arms, and explosives and detonators to stage attacks. Hundreds of people have died in attacks, including at least 39 gold mine workers ambushed earlier this month. Researchers and the United Nations had sounded the alarm on the risks of armed extremists reaching the area’s gold mines. Meanwhile, Reuters’ analysis of data from Burkina Faso, and testimony from people who have fled mining areas, prove that this is occurring at scale. In Burkino Faso, around 2,200 possible informal gold mines were identified in in 2018, and about half of them are within 16 miles of places where militants have carried out attacks. In 2018, government officials visited 24 sites close to attacks and estimated they produced a total of 727 kg of gold per year — worth about $34 million at current prices.
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