Sahel

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Mali’s Energy Collapse Deepens as Fuel Blockade and Infrastructure Decay Converge$

Mali’s capital has grown quieter in the dark. Across Bamako and beyond, entire neighborhoods now spend long nights without electricity, while daylight hours bring fuel shortages, stranded trucks, and roads worn into trenches. What began as a domestic energy crisis has...

Mali: Bamako Strikes Back as JNIM Expands Its Rule$

Over one turbulent weekend in mid‑October 2025, Mali’s army announced a series of airstrikes against jihadist strongholds just as the country’s most powerful al‑Qaeda affiliate, Jama’at Nusrat  al‑Islam wal‑Muslimin (JNIM), released a new video spelling out its...

Sahel: Three Sahel States Join Forces in Northern Mali Offensive$

Joint counterterrorism forces from the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) have carried out a precision operation in northern Mali, killing Boubacar Demougui Ag Almouner, one of the Islamic State in the Sahel’s most prominent field commanders. The strike took place on...

Sahel: The Demographic Tide Reshaping Mali’s Regional Balance$

Mali is on the cusp of a demographic transformation. According to new projections from the country’s National Population Directorate (DNP), the population—currently around 24.7 million in 2025—is expected to soar past 51.6 million by 2050. That represents a doubling...

Sahel: Fever Outbreak Overwhelms Mauritanian Hospitals$

Hospitals in Mauritania are under growing strain as an outbreak of an unidentified fever spreads through the country’s two largest cities, Nouakchott and Nouadhibou, raising alarm among residents and health professionals. Regional hospitals in both cities are...

Africa: New Warning of Evolving Hybrid Threats Linking Terrorism, Crime, and Climate Pressures Across Africa$

At a recent Mediterranean Dialogues Forum in Naples, Mauritania’s Foreign Minister Mohamed Salem Ould Merzoug delivered a sobering assessment of how Africa’s security landscape is changing — and what that means for neighboring regions and international partners....

Sahel: Growing tension between Niger and BeninF

Niger’s junta dispatched army reinforcements in Gaya, a town located on the border with Benin, some 300 km from Niamey. The increased military presence is likely connected to the border dispute between Niger and Benin on the island of Lété, a conflict that dates back...

Libya: ‘Worse than war’: Flood trauma haunts survivorsF

By Fulya Ozerkan: Grief etched into her face, 15-year-old Ibrar struggled to find the words to describe her pain at the loss of three friends in the huge flood that shattered her Libyan hometown. "We will never forget that day in Derna," she said, while trying hard to...

Mali: Touareg group kills five army soldiers in LéréF

An attack on two military camps in northern Mali claimed by armed rebel groups killed five soldiers, while 11 others are missing, the army said late Monday. It was the latest attack against army positions in northern Mali, which, in addition to suffering frequent...

Sahel: Niger takes risks over diplomatic standoff with FranceF

The European Union's top diplomat on Monday voiced solidarity with France's ambassador to Niger, who has faced intense pressure after refusing expulsion orders from military leaders. After sacking the elected government in late July, the military said it was expelling...