The Arab media, Al Jazeera, published this Thursday a damning article on the management of defense and security forces during demonstrations in Senegal in recent years. According to the media, the police used vehicles offered by the European Union intended for border protection between several countries, notably Senegal and Mali, to repress its citizens inside the country. The project was named GAR-Sl Sahel and cost 75 million euros, or 49 billion FCFA. 

“GAR-SI Sahel was a regional project running between 2016 and 2023 and financed with 75 million euros ($81.3 million / 49 billion CFA francs) from the EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa (FFUE for Africa), a development fund dedicated to combating the root causes of migration in Africa”, writes the media, after an investigation by its journalists, including Andrei Popoviciu.

Instead of using these elite units to fight against migration which is wreaking enormous havoc in Senegal and the sub-region, the means were used in repression during demonstrations. “The means, initially intended for the criminal cell, were de facto integrated into the territorial commands and used by the Senegalese security forces, according to a Spanish police source working in Senegal. A former senior officer of the Senegalese police also confirmed the “use of the GAR-SI unit during pro-democracy protests in Senegal. When shown the evidence, human rights groups were alarmed,” reads Al Jazeera.