Sahel

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Flashpoints: How Emirati and Qatari Competition Is Redrawing the Red Sea Map$

Charlotte Touati - Mondafrique: Two competing poles are now clearly taking shape in the contest for control over access to the Red Sea. The first, structured around the United Arab Emirates, Israel, and the Abraham Accords, includes Ethiopia and Somaliland, which has...

Flashpoints: Benin-Niger Tensions Deepen as Diplomatic Relations Deteriorate$

Relations between Benin and Niger have entered a new period of strain following reciprocal diplomatic expulsions. In recent days, authorities in Cotonou (Benin) asked two Nigerien embassy officials to leave the country. Niamey responded by declaring Benin’s chargé...

Europe’s New Migration Rules Shift Pressure South to North Africa$

The European Union’s revised migration framework, set to take effect in mid-2026, is already reshaping how migration is managed across the Mediterranean. Recent coordination meetings between North African states and Italy are part of the ongoing shift taking place in...

Irregular Migration to Spain Falls Sharply in 2025 With Decline in Atlantic Crossings$

After reaching a historic high in 2024, irregular migration to Spain fell sharply in 2025. Official data show a decline of more than 40% compared with the previous year, driven largely by a collapse in arrivals via the Atlantic route to the Canary Islands. Spanish...

How the US Intervention in Venezuela is Reviving Global South Fears of Power Politics$

The US raid that captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is resonating across Africa as part of a broader pattern of great‑power behavior that many on the continent see as a return to old hierarchies, rather than an isolated episode in Latin America. The...

Burkina Faso Faces New Security Tensions Amid Coup Allegations$

Burkina Faso experienced a sudden spike in political and security tension overnight in early January, with coordinated public mobilizations in Ouagadougou and Bobo-Dioulasso following warnings of a possible attempt to destabilize the country’s transitional...

Ivory Coast Edges Toward Political Flashpoint Ahead of 2025 Election$

Rising tensions, legacy rivalries, and fears of renewed violence loom over a fragile democracy. With just months to go before Côte d’Ivoire’s presidential election, the political atmosphere is growing tense—perhaps dangerously so. Both the ruling party and the...

Niger Deepens Strategic Ties with Russia After Break from FranceF

Civil nuclear cooperation and uranium development signal a shift in Niamey's global posture In a development that further signals Niger’s departure from its traditional Western orbit, Niamey hosted a high-level Russian delegation on July 28, 2025, led by Russian...

Jihadist Expansion Threatens Coastal West AfricaF

The Sahel is confronting an intensifying insurgency that continues to evolve in scale and complexity. Armed groups such as the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM) and the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (EIGS) are adapting and adjusting their...

Mali’s Airports Are Battling a Flow of CocaineF

Mali’s airports, from the bustling hub in Bamako to smaller regional ones, have become a key front in the battle against the flood of cocaine pouring into West Africa. While international help and modern tools like AI and trained dogs have led to some big busts, things aren’t easy.