North Africa’s Security
Security | Defense | Terrorism
Sahel: Three Sahel States Join Forces in Northern Mali Offensive
The Alliance of Sahel States (AES)—linking Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso—has entered a new phase of joint military coordination as shared drone operations and intelligence networks converge on militant strongholds across Mali’s northeast.
SECURITY & DEFENSE
Sahel: Senior Mali army officer admits defeat, calls for evacuation of part of the north
A well-known Malian commander has urged civilians to flee part of a northern region recently attacked by Islamic State jihadists, in a rare admission of the security problems facing locals. "There are no armed forces or any entity to guarantee the security of the...
Libya: Elusive US engagement in Libya
By Hamza Mrkouar Ten years after the US ambassador to Libya was killed in the eastern city of Benghazi, the country remains in turmoil and Washington is vying for influence with other foreign powers. Islamist militants armed with automatic weapons and grenades...
Mali: In the absence of institutional security in Kidal, the Tuaregs are in charge
On a sandy street in a northern Malian town, armed guards take turns at a checkpoint next to two unmarked pickup trucks as dusk falls and the sky slowly fills with stars. The men are not army troops but fighters from the Coordination of Azawad Movements (CMA) -- a...
Sahel: Burkina Faso defense chief fired as the destabilization of Burkina Faso continues
Burkina Faso junta chief Lieutenant-Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba, who took power in a January coup, has sacked his defence minister and assumed the role himself after a series of jihadist attacks, according to decrees published Monday. The first decree, read on...
Sahel: Attack on army unit in Deou, Burkina Faso claims two troops and Jihadists
Two soldiers died and a dozen "terrorists" were killed on Monday during an attack against a military detachment in Burkina Faso's jihadist-hit north, the army said. The landlocked African state is in the grip of a seven-year-old insurgency that has claimed more than...
Sahel: Three UN peacekeepers hurt in blast near Timbuktu, Mali
Three United Nations peacekeepers were hurt Sunday when their vehicle struck an improvised explosive device (IED) in northern Mali, the UN mission said on Twitter. The incident happened on a road between Ber and Timbuktu, MINUSMA said late Sunday, without identifying...
Western Sahara: Polisario warns car race against crossing in the disputed territory
Western Sahara independence movement the Polisario Front has warned organisers of the Africa Eco Race not to pass through the territory disputed with Morocco, describing it as a "war zone". The organisers had announced the October 15-30 auto rally would cross through...
Sahel: Growing tensions between Senegal and Mali over soldiers held in Mali against their will
Ivory Coast has accused Bamako of "hostage taking" after its neighbour laid out conditions for the release of 46 Ivorian soldiers held in Mali for two months. "It's a hostage-taking that will not remain without consequences," a source close to the Ivorian presidency...
Western Sahara conflict worsens regional diplomatic relations, amplifies instability
By Paul Raymond A bitter showdown between Morocco and its arch-rival Algeria over the disputed Western Sahara territory is causing diplomatic rifts with other nations and even risks sparking a full-blown conflict, analysts say. "We're seeing a diplomatic war, where...
Sahel: Islamic State attackers kill dozens of civilians in northern Mali
Dozens of people died after jihadists affiliated with the Islamic State group mounted an attack on a village in northern Mali, a local elected official and the leader of an armed told AFP Friday. The raid was followed by intense fighting between them and other armed...
INSURGENCIES & TERRORISM
Libya: Protagonists have no appetite for talk
Geneva, Feb 26, 2020 - UN-hosted talks between the warring sides in Libya that were supposed to start on Wednesday were clouded in uncertainty after participants said they were staying away. The talks are meant to be between representatives of the UN-recognised...
Sahel: The African Union to the rescue
Addis Ababa, Feb 27, 2020 - The African Union confirmed Thursday that it expected to send a temporary deployment of 3,000 troops to West Africa's Sahel region, where regional forces are struggling to respond to a nearly eight-year-old onslaught by armed Islamists. The...
Sahel: With insurgents several steps ahead, Sahel leaders are disoriented
Nouakchott, Feb 25, 2020 - A summit of Sahel states heard appeals Tuesday to step up the fight against jihadists whose offensive across three countries has claimed thousands of lives and inflicted crippling economic damage. "More than ever, the Sahel requires...
Sahel: French army says it killed some 50 insurgents in Mali’s Mopti region
Paris, Feb 21, 2020 - French soldiers "neutralised" around 50 in a series of operations in Mali this month, the army said Friday as it seeks to quell a years-long insurgency in the West African nation. The operations were carried out near Mopti in central Mali, where...
Sahel: Malian troops re-enter Timbuktu
Bamako, Feb 18, 2020 - A Malian army battalion comprising regulars and former rebels has entered the northern city of Timbuktu, the army said Tuesday, as part of a long-anticipated peace deal in the war-torn country. The move follows the return last week of similar...
Sahel: Insurgents attack church in Burkina Faso, 24 killed
Ouagadougou, Feb 17, 2020 - Gunmen have killed 24 people and wounded 18 in an attack on a Protestant church in a village in northern Burkina Faso, officials said Monday. In a separate incident, five Burkinabe soldiers in the troubled region were killed by a roadside,...
Sahel: Turmoil in central Mali
Bamako, Feb 14, 2020 - Twenty people were killed in an attack overnight on a village in central Mali, local officials said Friday, in an apparent spate of ethnic violence in the deeply troubled region. The attack occurred in Ogossagou, a village mainly inhabited by...
Sahel: Second deadly attack on a Fulani village in Mali’s Mopti region
Bamako, Feb 14, 2020 (By Kassim Traore) - Twenty people were killed in an attack overnight on a village in central Mali, local officials said Friday, in an apparent spate of ethnic violence in the deeply troubled region. The attack occurred in Ogossagou, a village...
West Africa facing Jihadist contagion from the Sahel
Cotonou, Feb 14, 2020 (By Josue Mehouenou with Sophie Bouillon in Lagos) - An attack on police in the far north of Benin has spurred fears that a country struggling with political problems is now at threat from jihadism sweeping down from the Sahel. The authorities...
Libya: Despite UN call for lasting ceasefire, warlord Harftar continues to wage war in Tripoli
Tripoli, Feb 13, 2020 - Rival forces clashed in the Libyan capital Thursday, witnesses and pro-Government of National Accord (GNA) forces said, a day after a UN Security Council resolution called for a "lasting ceasefire". Flights were again suspended at Mitiga,...