Security

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The UAE’s Growing Role in African Conflict Zones$

Saudi–Emirati tensions over Yemen open a wider question: to what extent is the UAE using proxy actors, media leverage, and selective alliances to reshape crisis zones from Libya and Sudan to the Western Sahara file, often in ways that cut across Algerian and broader...

Sahel: Niger Declares General Mobilization Amid Escalating Jihadist Violence$

Niger’s military-led authorities have announced a nationwide general mobilization that allows for the requisitioning of people, property, and services as part of their campaign against armed jihadist groups operating across the country. The decision comes amid...

Nigeria’s Conflict Goes Global With Washington Entering the Fight$

The United States’ Christmas Day airstrikes in northwestern Nigeria mark a rare but consequential shift in the internationalization of Nigeria’s long-running security crisis. While the Nigerian military has conducts on the regular basis aerial bombardments against...

Sahel: Violence in Northern Mali Drives New Wave of Displacement Into Mauritania$

More than 3,300 people have fled northern Mali over the past month, crossing into Mauritania to escape escalating violence and severe disruptions to daily life. The displacement highlights the continued deterioration of security conditions in Mali’s northern regions...

Mauritania Arrests Anti‑Corruption Figure Mohamed Ould Gadda$

Mauritanian authorities have arrested former senator Mohamed Ould Gadda, now heading the anti‑corruption NGO “Transparence Totale,” in a move that has drawn criticism from parliamentarians and opposition figures over due‑process guarantees and the treatment of...

Sahel: French Special Forces Accused of Direct Role in Benin Coup Response$

A recent account by the head of Benin’s Republican Guard alleged that France played a role in an attempted coup in Benin, triggering a legal and political debate in Paris. In an interview with Radio France Internationale (RFI), Colonel Dieudonné Djimon Tévoédjrè...

Sahel: US military resumes surveillance flights over NigerF

The United States has resumed surveillance flights over Niger that were halted in the wake of the military takeover there but other activities remain paused, a spokeswoman said Thursday. "We can confirm that US forces in Niger commenced ISR flights to monitor for...

Sahel: Army-Tuareg war reignites in north MaliF

Opinion by Arezki Daoud: The military junta in Mali is now confronted with the realities of war. It is battling on multiple fronts and not always winning. In the north, its policies and violent approach to problems have reignited a Tuareg rebellion. Mali's government...

Niger says France is planning to intervene to launch counter-coupF

Niger's military regime, which took power in July, accused France of deploying forces in several West African countries with a view to "military intervention". "France continues to deploy its forces in several ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States)...

Sahel: Deadly week in MaliF

A suicide attack targeted a military base in northern Mali on Friday, the army said, a day after deadly strikes on an army camp and a passenger boat by suspected jihadists killed 64 people. The army said on social media that an airport section of a base in Gao had...