WHY Sahel kidnappings of foreigners surged in 2025

Kidnappings of foreign nationals are rising fast across parts of Africa’s Sahel, especially in Mali and Niger, as armed groups adapt their tactics and use abductions to raise money, gain leverage, and pressure governments.

One recent case involved Bosnian traveller Marin Petrović, who documented on Instagram how he was abducted after an armed ambush on a road journey in Mali. His account describes militants stopping a vehicle, dragging him off the road, and moving him through difficult terrain. Petrović later wrote about harsh detention conditions before his eventual release.

The broader pattern is captured in conflict-monitoring data. ACLED, an independent group that tracks political violence, shows a marked increase in kidnappings of foreign nationals in Mali and Niger through 2025, with figures running up to late November. Analysts say this reflects an operational shift: foreign hostages can bring bigger payouts than local victims, while also creating diplomatic and economic pressure that militants can exploit.

A key driver, according to the reporting and analysts cited, is Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), an al-Qaeda affiliate that has expanded attacks across the region. Beyond headline-grabbing hostage cases, the group is also accused of pursuing what some analysts call “economic warfare” targeting routes, trade, and investment activity to make it harder for governments and partners to operate normally.

That economic angle helps explain why certain foreigners are targeted more often than others. In Mali, many of the kidnapped foreign nationals referenced in the reporting were linked to mining zones and industrial activity. Chinese workers, in particular, appear prominently in high-profile tracking of foreign abductions, reflecting China’s large footprint in construction, industry, and extraction projects in parts of the Sahel.

High-profile hostage cases also underline the ransom incentives. The reporting on the release of two Emirati citizens kidnapped in Mali described a deal involving a substantial ransom payment, highlighting why foreign hostages can be so valuable to armed groups and why such cases can quickly become geopolitical as well as security crises.

Not every case ends with a payment. Analysts quoted in the reporting suggest some armed groups may calibrate which nationalities they target, depending on what they believe will bring cash, political advantage, or reduced backlash. In some instances, releases may be used to manage perceptions or shape how outside governments respond.

For families, however, the strategic logic offers little comfort. Austrian humanitarian worker Eva Gretzmacher remains in captivity more than a year after being kidnapped in Niger, with relatives warning about the strain of extreme conditions, including desert heat.

The spike also lands at a time when parts of the Sahel are already facing deeper instability: repeated coups, the drawdown or reshaping of foreign security partnerships, and the spread of insurgent violence into new areas. Together, these factors can make travel routes riskier, complicate rescue or negotiation efforts, and raise the cost human and financial of operating in remote regions.