Hi,
In a nutshell, I would say yes!
The Sahara has always been a land of business, smuggling, and assaults. The mixture between Islamic fundamentalists and smugglers is only an extension of a “traditional” way of living. Of course it doesn’t bring any good for independent travelling, but it never did in the past anyway… The generally weak Sahelian governments may not be able to detain the creation of a new “narco-Sahara” country (resembling a bit Colombia…), in comparison with the tighter and more powerful Mediterranean governments. I don’t want (nor wish!) to sound pessimistic, but I see the current situation as something that will tend to last for the next decade or so….
Cheers,
José
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