The challenges are great in Niger, where residents of its vast, largely ungoverned spaces say they are losing confidence in authorities. "The Islamist groups are cleverly exploiting local grievances to make inroads with local populations." That includes abusive practices by local security forces, she said, calling efforts to professionalize them key. The State Department's Antiterrorism Assistance Program also is addressing such concerns by training local security forces in everything from border control and investigations to human rights and justice. "Nobody wants their local market blown up ... so if they have the trust of the population, the information comes back in."

Source: ABC News April 28, 2018 09:40 UTC