Briefs Bound

Russia has replaced the Wagner Group in Mali with its new Africa Corps, signaling a shift toward a more controlled and official military presence focused on training and intelligence. While the tactics may look different, Moscow’s long-term ambitions in the region remain very much the same—just better dressed.

Mauritania is getting €210 million in EU funding to act as a migration gatekeeper to fortress Europe. but there are growing reports of human rights abuses, deportations, and corruption raising concerns about the costs of this strategy.

As Libya’s political divide deepens and foreign actors recalibrate their alliances, Khalifa Haftar is emerging as the country’s dominant power broker, leveraging military strength and international diplomacy amid institutional collapse and the rise of financial crimes.

Egypt faces a deepening energy crisis as natural gas production crashes 39%, forcing a return to costly LNG imports and the unpopular decision to use polluting fuel oil.