A Malian soldier stood with US military personnel during an Operation Flintlock ceremony May 3. African, European, and North American participants from more than a dozen nations work within AFRICOM to combat the spread of terrorism. Donald Sparks/U.S. Africa CommandCounterterrorism Training To Curb Al Qaeda Threat In Africa -- Christian Science Monitor
US and European troops train local militaries in counterterrorism tactics in the face of threats from Al Qaeda and criminals in West Africa.
In the bare and unremarkable desert town of Thiès, a platoon of commandos from Mali and Senegal are scaling a building's edifice, one handful of rope at a time. This is practice.
Their American, Dutch, and Spanish handlers call it Operation Flintlock – an annual, West Africa-wide counterterrorism exercise to prep local militaries.
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My Comment: I expect such involvement to increase with time as African nations strive to limit and/or stop the more extremist elements in their society.