Armed attacks attributed to Sahel-based jihadist groups have intensified in northern Benin in recent weeks, highlighting the continued spread of militant activity along the country’s borders with Burkina Faso and Niger. On March 4, fighters linked to the Group for the...
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Desert Locusts Stir Fresh Worries in North-West Africa
Agricultural authorities in several parts of North and West Africa are maintaining surveillance for desert locust activity following recent reports of small swarms detected near Algeria’s southwestern border. The monitoring reflects the importance of the western...
Mali Army, Russian Allies Accused of Executing Civilians Near Mauritania Border
Malian troops and their Russian allies are accused of executing refugees and civilians near the Mauritanian border, according to RFI. The French media outlet said seven people who had just crossed from Mauritania into Mali were killed on Friday, March 6, in the Ahl El...
Niger: Armed Attacks Target Military Bases in Tahoua
In the early hours of March 9, 2026, armed militants launched coordinated assaults on military facilities in Tahoua, a city in northwestern Niger located about 500 kilometers east of Niamey. The attacks targeted both the local airport and nearby military...
Trump Sends Controversial Envoy to South Africa at a Diplomatic Low Point
The arrival of Leo Brent Bozell III as the new U.S. ambassador to South Africa comes at a moment of visible diplomatic tension between Washington and Pretoria. Appointed in March 2025 by President Donald Trump and arriving in Pretoria on February 17, 2026, Bozell...
Algeria and Niger Relaunch Trans-Saharan Gas Pipeline After Diplomatic Freeze
Algeria and Niger have formally reset strained bilateral relations and announced the operational relaunch of the long-delayed Trans-Saharan Gas Pipeline project, signaling a significant geopolitical and energy shift across North and West Africa. During an official...
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...
Sahel: Russia Replaces Wagner in Mali Under Pressure from Algeria, Touaregs Brace
As Wagner withdraws from Mali, Russia is not stepping away, but it’s reshaping its presence there. Under quiet...
Mauritania: Ex-President Verdict Puts Mauritania’s Legal System Under Spotlight
Mauritania’s high-profile corruption trial of former President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz has sparked a bigger...
Mali arrests former Prime Minister over alleged corruption
By Serge Daniel Former Malian prime minister Soumeylou Boubeye Maiga was arrested on Thursday as part of a corruption...
Chad: Protest in N’Djamena against military junta
Several hundred people marched in Chad's capital N'Djamena on Thursday to protest the ruling military junta as police...
Sahel: Failed assassination attempt on Mali’s interim president
Assimi Goita’s Profile By Amaury Hauchard with Laurent Lozano in Dakar An enigmatic special forces commander, Mali's...
Mali: Son of former president faces demand for his arrest
By Serge Daniel A year ago, times were good for Karim Keita. The son of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita had become a...
Mauritania arrests former president Ould Abdel Aziz for alleged corruption
Mauritania's former president, Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, was on Tuesday jailed after a judge in charge of a corruption...
Sahel: Burkina Faso holds talks on security crisis
Burkina Faso on Thursday launched a two-day huddle gathering governing and opposition parties to discuss the country's...
Mali strongman Assimi Goita takes over power, pledges elusive stability
By Kassim Traore Malian strongman Colonel Assimi Goita stood by the goal of staging elections next February as he was...
Sahel: Mali sinks into a deeper political crisis
By Marion Douet The African Union announced it was suspending Mali with immediate effect and threatened the...
Mali president, PM resign after arrest by military junta
By Serge Daniel and Malick Konate Mali's interim president and prime minister resigned on Wednesday, a top junta aide...
Sahel: Mali descends into chaos with second coup in the offing
The Real Problem in the Sahel: Editor’s Opinion The chaos in Mali has provided further evidence that the former...
Sahel: Handover of power to civilians is not happening in Mali
Mali's largest union launches fresh strike Mali's largest trade union launched a fresh strike on Monday, an AFP...
Sahel: Ridicule over Mali’s military regime and threat of sanctions prompt junta to announce upcoming “broad-based” government
Mali's interim government is set to form a new "broad-based" cabinet, the presidency said on Friday, amid growing...
Mauritania: Former President Ould Abdelaziz in trouble, current regime wants him locked up
Mauritania's former president, Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, was on Tuesday put under "house surveillance" by a judge after...
Sahel: Chad braces for more political turmoil
Opposition parties and civil society groups in Chad said fresh protests would be held on Saturday against the junta...
Chad: More smokes and mirrors in N’Djamena as military junta announces transition government
Editor Opinion: Smokes & Mirrors A “civilian prime minister,” a “transitional government.” “restoring democracy,”...
Sahel: Killed in Chad for demanding the rule of law
By Amaury Hauchard - A printed sheet of paper bearing a photo of Adoussouma hung on the crumbling wall at the...
Sahel: The extraordinary end of a reign: Day after he was proclaimed president of Chad, Deby allegedly dies in battle
Deby replaces Deby: what a surprise! A four-star general who is a son of Chad's slain president Idriss Deby Itno will...
Sahel: After 31 years in power, Chad’s president Deby reelected again
Idriss Deby Itno, who has won re-election according to provisional results Monday, has carved out a reputation as the...
Mali: Presidential and legislative elections in Mali set for February 2022
Presidential and legislative elections in Mali will take place next February, the country's post-coup government...
Sahel: Violence in Niger as country prepares to inaugurate a new president
By Boureima Hama - Elite troops in Niger thwarted an "attempted coup" early Wednesday, a security source said, just...
Sahel: Chad Strongman Deby prepares to rule for another term
Chad's Idriss Deby Itno, combining hardline tactics with political savvy, has sidelined his most viable challengers,...
Sahel: Chad ups violence against opposition, less than a month to presidential election
Police broke up demonstrations by opposition movements and civil society groups in Chad's capital N'Djamena Saturday,...
Chad: Opposition leader Saleh Kebzabo withdraws from presidential elections as dictator Deby ups intimidation against opposition
[Photo: Saleh Kebzabo] - Chad's main opposition figure, Saleh Kebzabo, on Monday announced he was withdrawing from the...
Sahel: Profile of Niger’s new president, Mohamed Bazoum
By Boureima Hama - Mohamed Bazoum, named the winner of Niger's presidential election, worked for years as the...
Niger: Former interior minister wins presidential elections, violence ensues
By Amaury Hauchard - Former interior minister Mohamed Bazoum won Niger's presidential elections, according to...
Sahel: People of Niger vote for a new president
By Boureima Hama and Amaury Hauchard - Niger voted Sunday in a presidential run-off between two political heavyweights...
Sahel: Political life in Chad heats up ahead of October presidential election
Fifteen parties in Chad's fragmented opposition said on Tuesday that they had named a single candidate to contest...
Burkina Faso Prime Minister proposing to negotiate with insurgents
Burkina Faso Prime Minister Christophe Dabire on Thursday floated the idea of negotiations with jihadist groups, an...
Sahel: Chad opposition parties coalesce against autocratic ruler Deby in upcoming election
Twelve opposition parties in Chad say they will field a joint candidate against Idriss Deby Itno, who has been in...
Chad regime bans protest before announcing candidacy of autocrat Idriss Deby
Chad's government has barred the opposition from staging protests ahead of an expected announcement by President...
Sahel: Feuding herders and farmers in central Mali endorse peace
Representatives from herder and farmer communities that have become ensnarled in violence sparked by jihadist attacks...
Sahel: Mali claims it ended military junta rule
Mali has officially disbanded its military junta, according to a government decree seen by AFP on Tuesday, more than...
Sahel: Mali police and army repress anti-French army protest
Malian security forces fired tear gas at dozens of demonstrators in the capital Bamako on Wednesday during an...
Sahel: Regime in Bamako bans the people of Mali from protesting foreign military presence
Mali's capital Bamako has banned a demonstration against France's military role in the West African country, the...
Mali military junta ratchets up repression against political figures
The Malian authorities on Thursday charged six figures, including a former prime minister, with seeking to mount a...
Sahel: Can Niger manage its first peaceful handover of presidential power?
Voters went to the polls in Niger on Sunday for an election that could seal a first peaceful handover between elected...
Mali’s military junta targets prominent figures in alleged ‘state security violation’
The Malian authorities said Monday they had opened an inquiry into violation of state security, a move that came after...
Sahel: France signals willingness to allow talks with Jihadists in the Sahel
France could back talks with some jihadist elements in Africa's restive Sahel region, a source in President Emmanuel...
Sahel: Mali is now a military dictatorship
Hopes that soldiers behind Mali's coup would swiftly restore civilian rule and tackle jihadism and ethnic violence are...
Burkina Faso: Christian Kabore “wins” presidential election
Burkina Faso's top court on Friday certified that President Roch Marc Christian Kabore had been elected for a second...