Al-Qaeda and Islamic State groups are working together in West Africa to grab large swaths of territory
Burkinabe special forces practice responding to attacks at a military training exercise run by the United States in Thies, Senegal, on Feb. 19. (Danielle Paquette/The Washington Post)
NOUAKCHOTT, Mauritania — Groups linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, at war with each other in the Middle East, are working together to take control of territory across a vast stretch of West Africa, U.S. and local officials say, sparking fears the regional threat could grow into a global crisis.
