Terror, poverty and climate change in the Sahel By AFP Share Paris, France - With at least 90 people dead in two separate attacks close to the Niger and Mali borders, we look at Africa's increasingly troubled Sahel region. The semi-arid zone has become a crucible of jihadist terror, climate change and population movement. Here is a brief explainer on the region: What is it? The Sahel, or Sahil in Arabic, meaning coast or shore, is a vast region that stretches along the southern rim of the Sahara desert from the Atlantic to the Red Sea. Wedged between the desert to the north and tropical forests and savannah to the south, the belt has a tropical semi-arid climate.