North Africa’s Security
Security | Defense | Terrorism
Niger Moves Uranium From SOMAÏR Mine Despite Arbitration Ruling
Niger’s military authorities have authorized the removal and transport of uranium from the SOMAÏR mine at Arlit without the involvement of longtime operator Orano, prompting the French nuclear group to denounce the shipment as illegal and in breach of a September 2025 World Bank–linked arbitration ruling. While Niamey signals plans to sell the stock on the open market as an assertion of resource sovereignty, the move raises legal, safety, and security concerns as uranium travels by road through conflict‑affected Sahel corridors.
SECURITY & DEFENSE
Sahel: France wraps up military withdrawal from Mali
By Selim Saheb Ettaba and Joris Fioriti The last soldiers belonging to France's Barkhane operation in Mali have now left the African country, the French chiefs of staff said on Monday. French forces have been supporting Mali against insurgents for nearly a decade,...
Sahel security: France’s military presence in Mali
French troops gained an enthusiastic welcome when they entered Mali more than nine years ago to help it fight a jihadist-fuelled insurgency. On Monday, France pulled out of the country in the face of deep hostility after falling out with colonels who seized power...
Sahel: Understanding the Mali crisis
On August 18 2020, crowds in the Malian capital Bamako applauded as young colonels toppled a civilian government struggling to roll back a bloody jihadist insurgency. Today, the looming anniversary of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita's ouster sees a country mired in...
Sahel: Militants kill more soldiers and civilians in Mali
Forty-two Malian soldiers died in an attack at the weekend by suspected jihadists, the army said Wednesday in a document naming the fatalities, revising an earlier figure of 21 dead. The toll is one of the bloodiest in Mali's decade-long insurgency, which has spread...
Libya: Dozens of suspects go on trial for alleged membership to IS
The trial opened Monday in Libya's western city of Misrata of 56 suspected Islamic State group militants captured after the 2016 fall of its bastion Sirte. The 56 suspects, out of a total of 320 facing trial, appeared in court before the trial was adjourned to...
Sahel: Suspected jihadists kill 4 Mali soldiers, 2 civilians in Tessit
At least four soldiers, two civilians and five assailants were killed on Sunday in an attack in a strategic border zone between Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, Mali's army said. The army blamed the attack on "terrorists" in an announcement late Sunday, using the term it...
Sahelian country of Chad looking for path to peace
By Tim Witcher and Dylan Gamba in Libreville Chad's military government and more than 40 opposition groups signed a deal Monday to launch national peace talks this month, but the main rebel outfit refused to take part. United Nations and African Union leaders urged...
Sudan condemns Chadian group’s killing of 18
Sudan's foreign ministry on Saturday condemned the killing of 18 Sudanese people during an attack by an armed group from Chad, state media reported. The killings took place Thursday when Sudanese herders from West Darfur state were ambushed while following the trails...
Sahel: Bomb attack in Ouakan, central Mali kills civilians
At least 12 civilians have been killed in Mali by suspected jihadists who lured victims into a bomb attack, two elected officials and a police source told AFP on Saturday. "The jihadists first killed two civilians in Ouakan (a town near Bankass in central Mali) before...
Libya: Fighting between rival militias rocks El Jebs, south of Tripoli
Clashes between armed groups erupted overnight in Tripoli, according to local media reports, the latest violence to hit the Libyan capital. An AFP journalist heard gunfire and explosions around 1:00 am Saturday (2300 GMT) in the city. The fighting, with light and...
INSURGENCIES & TERRORISM
Libya/Tunisia: Syrian fighters seize facility of Chinese industrial company near Tunisia borders
Sahel: Somber assessment about Burkina Faso’s stability, say MEA Risk LLC
Advisory firm MEA Risk LLC released a brief to its client suggesting that the instability in Burkina Faso and neighboring countries will likely escalate going forward. The audio portion of the brief is posted above. The MEA Risk note says Burkina Faso is a complex...
Libya: UN panel says no trace of Sudanese RSF mercenaries in Libya
United Nations, United States, Jan 20, 2020 - A United Nations panel said Monday it had no "credible evidence" of Sudanese paramilitaries fighting in conflict-wracked Libya for military strongman Khalifa Haftar as alleged by some media outlets. Several Libyan and...
Sahel: Insecurity forces Niger to halt voter registration in troubled regions
Niamey, Jan 21, 2020 - Niger's election commission said Tuesday it had suspended a voter registration drive in a western border region buffeted by jihadist insurgents. The Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) said because of security circumstances in the...
Libya: Haftar under pressure to resume oil exports
Tripoli, Jan 21, 2020 - The United States called Tuesday for an immediate resumption of Libya's lifeline oil exports that have been blocked by forces loyal to military strongman Khalifa Haftar since last week. "The suspension of National Oil Corporation (NOC)...
Sahel: Boko Haram kills more civilians in western Chad
N'Djamena, Jan 20, 2020 - Nine civilians died in western Chad after a female suicide bomber detonated her explosives in an area targeted in the past by jihadist group Boko Haram, the army and officials said on Monday. Chad is one of the countries struggling with the...
Africa: More violence in northern Nigeria
Kano, Nigeria, Jan 20, 2020 - Heavily armed jihadists have carried out an "extremely violent" attack on a vital aid facility housing United Nations workers in northeast Nigeria, the UN said Monday. No aid workers were harmed in the assault, but a military source said...
Libya: The Berlin conference outcome suggests no peace in Libya
Opinion by Arezki Daoud: All the roads leading to Tripoli are paved with landmines. The Berlin conference was a great initiative, and kudos to Angele Merkel for trying. But I fear it ended with no major progress and clear signs that the violence will not end anytime...
Libya: Pro-Haftar militia shuts down pipelines leading to export terminals
UPDATE: Gunmen known for their support to Khalifa Haftar closed on Sunday morning halted the flow of crude oil by shutting down the pipelines that reach the Zawiya port. The closure came after tribes loyal to Haftar threatened to do so, in protest against the Turkish...
Tunisia: Eight people sentenced to death for 2015 attack
Tunis, Jan 18, 2020 - A Tunisian court on Friday sentenced eight people to death in a trial for a 2015 attack on a presidential guard bus that killed 12. The November 24, 2015 suicide bombing in the capital Tunis claimed by the Islamic State group (IS) killed a dozen...