Al-Qaeda’s Sahel branch, Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM or GNIM in French) is now emerging as the region’s dominant jihadist force. Even the brutal Islamic State has been largely unable to contain JNIM's expansion, which has been expanding its control...
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Brief: Fifteen Migrants Found Dead in a Boat off the Coast of Nouadhibou, Mauritania
Fifteen undocumented migrants, including one Mauritanian, have died off the coast of Nouadhibou, according to a Sahara Media. Authorities in Nouadhibou discovered a boat carrying 39 migrants, among whom nine were found dead, and ten others were in critical condition....
Mali Keeps Pressuring Algeria, Accusing it of Interference
Mali has accused Algeria of interference and supporting terrorist groups after top Algerian diplomat criticized its counter-terrorism strategy. Bamako alleges Algeria maintains ties to insurgent groups, a reference to the Toureg tribes, [am4show have='g1;'...
Sahel: Mali and Canadian mining firm Barrick are talking again
Mali’s junta and Canadian gold mining firm Barrick Gold went back to the negotiating table to find a compromise in their ongoing feud. The two spent months fighting over the Loulo-Gounkoto gold mine, where the Malian authorities recently seized nearly three tons of...
Sahel: France Concludes Military Presence in Chad
France has officially ended its military presence in Chad, returning the Kossei base to the Chadian government. This marks the end of a long-standing French military footprint in the Sahel after similar exits from Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger. [am4show have='g1;'...
French energy firm TotalEnergies Exits Mali, Sells Operations to Bénin Petro-Backed Firm
TotalEnergies has exited Mali, finalizing the sale of its operations to Coly Energy Mali, backed by Bénin Petro. While no official explanation was provided, it is likely that tensions with Mali’s ruling junta may have played a role. Sources say that persistent tax...
French energy firm TotalEnergies Exits Mali, Sells Operations to Bénin Petro-Backed Firm
TotalEnergies has exited Mali, finalizing the sale of its operations to Coly Energy Mali, backed by Bénin Petro. While...
France’s decades-long military presence in Africa is winding down
France’s decades-long military presence in Africa is winding down as countries like Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire announce...
Moroccan Truck Drivers and Spanish Tourists Freed After Kidnapping in Burkina Faso and Southern Algeria
Four Moroccan truck drivers, kidnapped over the weekend by an armed group near the Burkina Faso-Niger border, were...
Sahel: French forces are leaving Niger this week
France said Thursday that it would start withdrawing its troops from Niger this week after a falling-out with the...
Sahel: 29 Niger soldiers killed by suspected jihadists
Twenty-nine soldiers were killed in western Niger in an attack by suspected jihadists, the defence ministry said on...
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...
Mali preparing offensive against Tuareg fighters in north of the country
A Malian army convoy was moving closer towards the northern rebel stronghold Kidal on Tuesday, following a resumption...
Niger: Dozen soldiers killed in Jihadist attack in Tijane
A terrorist attack took place in the Tijiane region, Niger, on September 29, 2023, resulting in the death of 13...
Sahel: Burkina’s new leader de-emphasizes importance of election
Elections in Burkina Faso are "not a priority" compared to "security", the country's military leader Captain Ibrahim...
Sahel: Full-blown war in central and north Mali
Tuareg-dominated separatist groups said on Saturday that they had inflicted heavy losses on the Malian military in an...
Mali: Al-Qaeda offshoot intensifies attacks on Mali army
@northafricajournalMali #Lere: An attack on two #military camps in northern #Mali claimed by #Touaregs killed five...
Sahel: Mali buries officer killed crash
Mali's ruling junta on Wednesday paid tribute to a lieutenant colonel who relatives say was killed aboard a plane that...
Mali: Junta postpones presidential election indefinitely, outrage in Bamako
Malian political groups expressed outrage on Wednesday at the junta's decision to postpone indefinitely 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...
Mali: Tuaregs say they shot down two military planes, captured soldiers in intensifying conflict
An alliance of armed groups in northern Mali said it has taken several soldiers prisoner and killed a dozen others,...
Niger junta creates anti-corruption commission
The military regime in Niger that seized power in a coup said late Wednesday it has created an anti-corruption...
Sahel: The demise of the ancient city of Timbuktu
When jihadists in Mali announced they would blockade the ancient city of Timbuktu, residents thought it was just...
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...
Libya: ‘Worse than war’: Flood trauma haunts survivors
By Fulya Ozerkan: Grief etched into her face, 15-year-old Ibrar struggled to find the words to describe her pain at...
Mali: Touareg group kills five army soldiers in Léré
An attack on two military camps in northern Mali claimed by armed rebel groups killed five soldiers, while 11 others...
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...
Sahel: Army-Tuareg war reignites in north Mali
Opinion by Arezki Daoud: The military junta in Mali is now confronted with the realities of war. It is battling on...
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...
Morocco: Earthquake kills hundreds of people in Marrakesh
A powerful earthquake that shook Morocco late Friday killed more than 600 people, interior ministry figures showed,...
Sahel: Deadly week in Mali
A suicide attack targeted a military base in northern Mali on Friday, the army said, a day after deadly strikes on an...
Sahel: Suspected GSIM militants attack boat on the Niger River in Mali
A passenger boat on the Niger River in northern Mali was attacked on Thursday by suspected jihadists, the Malian army...
Sahel: Protests after Chadian soldier dies in attack at French base
An army nurse at a French military base in northern Chad shot dead a Chadian soldier who had attacked him, triggering...
Sahel: Mali junta carries out air strikes on ‘terrorists’
Mali's military junta said it carried out air strikes on Wednesday against "terrorist groups" that were planning...
Sahel: Dozens dead in clash in north Burkina Faso
The general staff of the Burkina Faso military said 53 people died in Koumbri, near Ouahigouya in the north of the...
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...
Sahel: France considering selective troop pullout from Niger
The French army is holding talks with Niger's military over withdrawing "elements" of its presence there following a...
Mali: Three wounded in attack near capital Bamako
A policeman and two civilians were wounded when Mali's security forces repelled an attack near the capital Bamako on...
Niger: France stills insists on restoring ousted president Bezoum
Niger's military regime fired a new verbal broadside at France on Friday, accusing Paris of "blatant interference" by...
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...
Gabon’s new junta makes promises of return to civilian rule
Gabon's coup leader vowed after being sworn in as interim president on Monday to restore civilian rule through "free,...
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...