By Arezki Daooud: A lot of military-related events are taking place in the Sahel and other parts of Africa. First, a quick update on US troop withdrawal from Niger. US defense officials are saying the pullout is happening as scheduled and apparently without any...
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Niger: Rebel group attacks pipeline, warns Chinese contractor to stay clear
By MondAfrique: The Patriotic Front of Liberation (FPL), a rebel group based between northern Niger and southern Libya, claims to have destroyed a section of Niger’s pipeline, a move that it qualified as “a first warning to the Niamey junta", in a statement released...
Burkina Faso Junta Faces Governance Challenges Amid Controversies and Rumors
Recently, there were shooting incidents in Ouagadougou and the absence of junta chief Captain Traore was interpreted as the end of his reign, only to show up recently to donate blood. Continue here.
Sahel: French company Orano loses operating license of key uranium site in Niger
This followed months of demands for the project’s resumption, which had been stalled. Orano plans to contest this decision legally. Despite Orano's minimization of the impact, the mine holds significant uranium reserves. This action is seen within the context of...
Niger: More Russian Weapons and Military Instructors Land in Niamey
The departure of the French and American troops from Niger created an opportunity for the Russians to replace them. The Russians’ objective is to clearly counter the west and reduce its influence in the Sahel, West Africa and elsewhere on the African continent. The...
Senegal at the Center of Another Geopolitical Fight
By Arezki Daoud: France is experiencing an unprecedented backlash in the Sahel and in West Africa. Disastrous post-colonial policies forced the people of Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso to expel French troops and diplomats, reducing Paris' entrenched but...
![Sahel: French company Orano loses operating license of key uranium site in Niger](https://i0.wp.com/north-africa.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/imouraren.jpg?resize=300%2C300&ssl=1)
Sahel: French company Orano loses operating license of key uranium site in Niger
This followed months of demands for the project’s resumption, which had been stalled. Orano plans to contest this...
![Niger: More Russian Weapons and Military Instructors Land in Niamey](https://i0.wp.com/north-africa.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Niger-soldiers.jpg?resize=300%2C300&ssl=1)
Niger: More Russian Weapons and Military Instructors Land in Niamey
The departure of the French and American troops from Niger created an opportunity for the Russians to replace them....
![Senegal at the Center of Another Geopolitical Fight](https://i0.wp.com/north-africa.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Bassirou-Diomaye-Faye.jpg?resize=300%2C300&ssl=1)
Senegal at the Center of Another Geopolitical Fight
By Arezki Daoud: France is experiencing an unprecedented backlash in the Sahel and in West Africa. Disastrous...
Niger and Mali up their anti-Western positions, lash out at France and US
Backlash against France continues in Niger, with several local media reporting that security and intelligence services...
Economy: China’s commitment to Africa is being tested by its stance on the continent’s crippling debt
By MondAfrique: As a whole, Africa has seen its debt increase five-fold over the past twenty years, to reach $700...
Russia’s first African military base in a highly unstable nation
By Arezki Daoud: Since Russia started its war on Ukraine, we have been told that Moscow was headed towards disaster....
Podcast: The Sahel is the Next Big Geopolitical Crisis where Foreign Meddlers are Congregating
Transcript: The Sahel is now clearly the next big event in Africa's geopolitics. After the complete destruction of...
Mali junta ends Algiers Agreement
The ruling junta in Mali announced, on Thursday 25 January, the "end, with immediate effect", of the Algiers agreement...
Russia-Africa: From weapon sales to economic ties
By Arezki Daoud: Has the war in Ukraine deter Russia from engagement in Africa? Certainly not! We know on the...
Sahel: Russia to experience boost of its influence in the Sahel
By Arezki Daoud: Russia’s influence in the Sahel is about to expand further with more cooperation deals announced by...
How Sahel populations reject ECOWAS ($)
The West African group of ECOWAS is supposed to play the role of mediator in regional crises, with a combination of a...
Sahel: Niger looking for alternative partners to France and the west
A major Nigerian delegation traveled to Moscow on Monday, 15 January 2024, in a tour that will visit Serbia, Turkey...
Sahel: Qatar helps dissipate diplomatic tensions between Mali and Algeria
The North Africa Journal - Qatar has demonstrated its diplomatic skills in the Middle East crisis but it has also been...
Sahel: Kidnapped in Libya in 2017, South African medic released this week in Mali
A South African paramedic who had been held by jihadists in Mali for over six years has been released, security and...
Rising Storms: The Pact Uniting Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger Against Jihadists and Isolation
The military rulers of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger have banded together in a joint defence pact to fight jihadists...
Niger ditches security arrangements with EU, engages more with Russia
Niger's military leaders said Monday that they were ending two European Union security and defence missions in the...
Niger: UN resumes humanitarian flights in Niger
The United Nations said it resumed humanitarian flights in Niger on Wednesday, suspended after a July coup in the...
Sahel: As France’s presence in the Sahel deteriorates, US maintains ties and remains active
In a stark contrast to the declining French presence, the United States has displayed a robust commitment to the Sahel...
Niger braces for fresh EU sanctions
The European Union on Monday took a legal step towards imposing sanctions on Niger's new military rulers, who...
Niger ups pressure on UN to vacate the country
Niger's military leaders have ordered the United Nations coordinator to leave the country within 72 hours, blaming the...
Sahel: Nigeria endorses Algeria’s mediation plan for Niger
The Sahel issues are now the domain of the Algerian military, who have sidelined the president and his aids due to...
Sahel: Niger considering Algeria’s mediation offer and a transition period
Niger began three days of national mourning Tuesday after 29 soldiers were killed in a suspected jihadist attack, the...
Sahel: Mali warns ECOWAS against military action in Niger
Mali "will not stand idly by" if foreign governments intervene in neighouring Niger, Bamako's top diplomat warned the...
Sahel: Niger bans French aircraft from its airspace
Niger's military rulers have banned "French aircraft" from flying over the country's airspace, according to the Agency...
Sahel: French President makes pragmatic decision to step away from Niger
French withdrawals from Africa After Mali, Burkina Faso and the Central African Republic, France is being forced to...
Niger and ECOWAS: The cost of collective punishment
Lines of hundreds of trucks stretch back many kilometres close to Benin's northern border with Niger, their cargo...
Sahel: Growing tension between Niger and Benin
Niger’s junta dispatched army reinforcements in Gaya, a town located on the border with Benin, some 300 km from...
Sahel: Niger takes risks over diplomatic standoff with France
The European Union's top diplomat on Monday voiced solidarity with France's ambassador to Niger, who has faced intense...
Sahel: US military resumes surveillance flights over Niger
The United States has resumed surveillance flights over Niger that were halted in the wake of the military takeover...
Niger cancels 1,000 diplomatic passports from ousted regime
The new military rulers of Niger have cancelled more than 990 diplomatic passports held by nationals and foreigners...
Niger: Anti-France groups maintain pressure, want France out
"Macron, get out of our house," thousands of young demonstrators chant to the rhythm of reggae, making plain their...
Niger says France is planning to intervene to launch counter-coup
Niger's military regime, which took power in July, accused France of deploying forces in several West African...
Leaders of Francophone Africa gripped by fear, strengthen their own security
By Arezki Daoud: Leaders of Francophone Africa are in state of panic following a series of coups that toppled their...
Niger-France relations sour as pressure groups in Niger demand withdrawal of French troops
Thousands of demonstrators in Niger on Sunday held a third day of rallies calling for former colonial ruler France to...
Niger: Anti-France sentiment spikes in Niger, tense weekend of protests ahead
Niger braced Friday for a weekend of planned anti-French rallies as tensions mount between the country's new military...
Gabon: People waiting for junta to announce plan in coup aftermath
People in the central African state of Gabon awaited a steer on their future on Thursday after rebel army officers...
Sahel: Niger wants French ambassador out
Niger's new military rulers have stripped France's ambassador of diplomatic immunity and ordered police to expel him,...
Mali, a leading producer of gold, manganese and lithium, shakes up mining sector
Mali has adopted a new mining code allowing the state to take up to 30 percent stakes in new mineral projects and...
Algeria looking to ease tension in Sahel after Niger coup
Algeria's top diplomat began a tour of West African countries Wednesday in a bid to find a solution following the coup...
Sahel: Political situation in Niger worsens with African Union suspending membership
By Aymeric Vincenot: The African Union said Tuesday that it had suspended Niger's membership in the wake of a military...
Sahel: Mali government troops and their Wagner allies are now attacking the ethnic Touaregs
By Arezki Daoud: As I have been saying for a while, the Malian junta is leveraging its honeymoon period with Russia's...
Niger crisis: Burkina Faso sides with Niger junta, suspends media for anti-Niger stance
Burkina Faso's junta-led government has suspended one of the country's most popular radio stations after it broadcast...
Niger: Toppled president said to be “fine, given the situation”
Niger's detained president was seen by his doctor on Saturday, his entourage said, amid mounting concern for his...