Russian-linked forces in Mali are increasingly coming under attack from armed groups that are adapting to the drone age. Two recent incidents in the Kidal region, a March 30 strike near Anéfis and an April 7 attack on a camp in Aguelhok, are evidence of a clear...
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Niger Turns to Local Self-Defense Units to Contain Growing Insecurity
Niamey's decision to formalize local self-defense units called Domol Leydi is the latest sign that Niger's security crisis has worsened, moving beyond a conventional counterterrorism problem and into a broader struggle for territorial control. The government says the...
West Africa: Jihadist Attacks Intensify in Northern Benin Amid Cross-Border Insurgency Pressure
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...
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...
Mauritania Battles Dual Outbreaks Amid Sahel’s Shifting Climate
Mauritania is contending with concurrent outbreaks of diphtheria and Rift Valley fever that have left at least 36...
Senegal Battles Dual Epidemics: Monkeypox and Rift Valley Fever
Senegalese health authorities have announced two concurrent epidemics: monkeypox (Mpox) and Rift Valley fever. So far,...
Mauritania and Senegal Report Rift Valley Fever Deaths Amid Regional Outbreak
Health authorities in Mauritania and Senegal are grappling with a new outbreak of Rift Valley Fever (RVF), a...
Health: World Health Organization concerned about unprecedented number “intersecting health emergencies,” appeals for money
The World Health Organization on Monday appealed for $2.54 billion for its work in 2023 to help millions of people...
Sahel: Millions of people face food shortages
The United Nations warned Friday that up to 18 million people in the Sahel face severe food insecurity, with rations...
US-Russia competition expands to Mali and the Sahel
The top US military commander for Africa on Thursday suggested that impoverished and jihadist-hit Mali was paying...
Sahel: Disasters hit Niger hard
By Boureima Hama Few countries in the world struggle with as many burdens as Niger. The arid Sahel state is the...
Sahel: The country of Niger faces Covid and cholera at once
First Covid Delta cases emerge in Niger The first cases of Delta variant of Covid-19 have been recorded in the...
Mali: Less than two months after his release by Jihadists, opposition leader Soumaila Cisse has died of Covid-19
Malian opposition leader Soumaila Cisse has died of coronavirus aged 71, his family and party said Friday, after being...
Health: Shortly after the UN declared polio eradicated in Africa, cases emerge in Chad
Dozens of polio cases have been detected in Chad just months after the UN declared the disease eradicated in Africa,...
Sahel: Upsurge of malaria cases in Mali
Malaria cases in northern Mali have spiked, according to medical workers, claiming 23 lives in the often lawless...
Niger to drive UN talks on post Covid-19
United Nations, United States, Sept 1, 2020 - Niger, the current president of the UN Security Council, said Tuesday it...
Niger confronted with multiple natural disasters
Heavy rains that have struck Niger since June have claimed 19 lives and inflicted economic harm on tens of thousands...
Mali announces reopening of air and land borders
Bamako, July 24, 2020 - Mali announced Friday that it would shortly re-open its air and land borders after a...