North Africa’s Security
Security | Defense | Terrorism
Algeria and Tunisia Expand Military Cooperation Amid Regional Security Tensions
Algeria and Tunisia signed a renewed defense cooperation agreement in Algiers on October 7, 2025, expanding their 2001 framework to include joint training, border operations, and intelligence exchange. The pact, confirmed by both defense ministries aims to strengthen coordination against terrorism, trafficking, and irregular migration along their shared frontier.
SECURITY & DEFENSE
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 world's poorest country according to the UN's Human Development Index. It faces bloody jihadist insurgencies on two of its borders. And now it is being...
Libya: Political divisions threaten the holding of this month’s elections
Libya court upholds presidential bid of PM Dbeibah A Libyan appeals court on Wednesday rejected two petitions against interim prime minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah's candidacy in this month's presidential election, Libyan media reported. The cases argued that Dbeibah was...
Mali: How insurgents are in total control in the north of the country
By Amaury Hauchard Security forces in the Menaka region of northeastern Mali are struggling with a kaleidoscope of militia groups as they strive to bring order to the violence-torn area. Almost every important armed group in Mali has a foothold in Menaka, from the...
Libya: As country prepares for elections, presence of foreign mercenaries remains thorny issue
Fewer violations of the arms embargo on Libya have occurred this year as compared with 2020, but the "continuing presence" of foreign fighters is "still a serious threat," UN experts said in a confidential report. Nonetheless, while the "intense pace of delivery" of...
Egyptian court sentences 22 Jihadists to death by hanging
An Egyptian court on Thursday sentenced to death by hanging 22 Islamist militants for 54 attacks including the attempted assassination of a former interior minister, a judicial source told AFP. The men were found guilty of committing 54 "terrorist operations"...
Burkina Faso: Anti-France sentiment in Burkina Faso creates operational challenges for French troops in the Sahel
By Armel Baily A French military convoy heading for Mali remained blocked in Burkina Faso on Thursday after being hampered by protests. The convoy, comprising several dozen vehicles, is heading for a French base in Gao in the violence-torn centre of Mali. It first has...
Niger: Unable to get protection from the government, Niger villagers are now forming militia groups
By Boureima Hama Abdoulaye casts a questioning eye over the passengers of a car that has pulled up at the entrance to his village in western Niger. Slung over the shoulder of his long and slender frame are a bow and a quiver of arrows -- the only weapon he has against...
Podcast: Tunisia revisited- How the government neglects the inner regions
Tunisia Revisited: MEA Risk analyst Arezki Daoud reviews where Tunisia stands as of November 2021 in the areas of social and economic development.
Security: As Russia’s influence in Africa grows, EU wants to impose sanctions on Russian mercenaries Wagner
EU foreign ministers agreed Monday to draw up more sanctions on shadowy Russian mercenary group Wagner over its involvement in a string of hotspots, the bloc's foreign policy chief said. The private military outfit, which Western capitals see as closely linked to the...
Sahel: New Jihadist attacks in Mali and Burkina Faso
Four Malian soldiers were killed by suspected jihadists Sunday and several others wounded in an attack northeast of the capital Bamako, near the border with Mauritania, the army said on social media. The soldiers, on post at Guire, in the Nara region, fought off an...
INSURGENCIES & TERRORISM
Libya: Warlord Haftar’s air raid targets civilians, injures children
Tripoli, Oct 7, 2019 - An air raid on riding stables near the Libyan capital Tripoli has wounded at least six people, including children, sparking condemnation from the United Nations and the unity government. An African worker was also among the six people wounded in...
Sahel: Mali president Boubacar Keita dismisses coup speculation
Bamako, Oct 6, 2019 - Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita on Sunday rejected as speculation talk of a military coup after recent jihadist attacks left dozens of soldiers dead near the border with Burkina Faso. Keita said lessons would be learned after 38 soldiers...
Libya: US kills suspected IS insurgents in raid on Libya
The US military command for Africa announced Friday it killed 17 suspected Islamic State group jihadists in southern Libya, in the third such strike in a week. "At this time, it is assessed the airstrike killed 17 terrorists" on Thursday, Africom said in a statement....
Libya: Two killed in drone strike in Sirte, raid on Mitiga airport
Tripoli, Sept 16, 2019 - Drone strikes on Libya's coastal town of Sirte killed two pro-unity government fighters and wounded 18 others on Monday, their force said, blaming foreign powers backing military strongman Khalifa Haftar. The three raids on the former Islamic...
Sahel: Clash near Goundam in Mali leaves three dead
A Malian soldier was killed and seven others injured in an ambush by gunmen on Wednesday in the northern Timbuktu region of the country, military and local sources said. The attack was carried out in the morning by armed men on a pickup truck about 20 kilometres (12...
Sahel: Security agents kidnapped in Mopti, Mali
Bamako, Sept 6, 2019 - Armed men abducted 22 members of a military unit comprising mainly Tuareg ex-rebels and former members of armed pro-government groups in violence-wracked Mali, the driver of their bus said Friday. The group, set to be incorporated into a...
Sahel: Kidnappings intensify in southeast Niger
Niamey, Sept 5, 2019 - At least 66 civilians were kidnapped in July in southeastern Niger near the border with Nigeria where the jihadist group Boko Haram is active, a UN source said Thursday. "At least 66 civilians including 44 women were abducted in July 2019 alone...
Sahel: Fourteen killed in IED explosion in Mali
Bamako, Sept 3, 2019 - Fourteen bus passengers were killed Tuesday by a road mine in central Mali, the bus company said, in an attack bearing the hallmarks of jihadists who plague the region. The vehicle was en route from the central town of Douentza to the northern...
Tunisia: Four killed in army-insurgent clash in Kasserine
Tunis, Sept 2, 2019 (AFP) - A national guard officer and three suspected jihadist militants were killed in a gunbattle in northwest Tunisia on Monday, his force said. "Terrorists are still around but Tunisia is stronger," Prime Minister Youssef Chahed said, paying...
Sahel: Boko Haram attacks village in Gueskerou, Nigeria, dozen killed
Niamey, Aug 24, 2019 - A night raid blamed on Boko Haram has left a dozen villagers dead in southeastern Niger on the frontier with Nigeria, a local official said Saturday. The attack on Friday night in the border district of Gueskerou, is the latest to hit the Diffa...