North Africa’s Security
Security | Defense | Terrorism
Franco-Algerian relations set to worsen over planned military maneuvers in Morocco
Algeria summoned the French Ambassador to protest the planned “Chergui 2025” Franco-Moroccan military exercises scheduled for September near the Algerian border. Tensions between the nations have escalated following France’s support for Morocco’s position on Western Sahara.
SECURITY & DEFENSE
Libya: First group of mercenaries linked to Turkey leaving Libya
Pro-Ankara Syrian militia fighters deployed in Libya have started to withdraw, a French diplomatic source said on Thursday, describing the move as "encouraging". "This is one of the encouraging gestures that we have seen. There are movements (of the Syrian militia...
Mali: French military accused of killing six people in raid on Talataye, France denies
Six people were killed in northeastern Mali on Thursday in disputed circumstances, with French forces saying a strike targeted jihadists and local residents alleging those left dead were young hunters. It was the second time in recent months that an air strike had...
Sahel: Niger’s Tahoua region targeted by terror groups, dozens killed in fresh raids
Scores of people have died in the deadliest suspected jihadist massacre ever to hit Niger, the government said Monday, underscoring the huge security challenge facing new President Mohamed Bazoum. Government spokesman Zakaria Abdourahamane said 137 people had died in...
Libya: Women making modest progress in politics but glass ceiling still strong
By Hamza Mekouar and Jihad Dorgham: Libya's new government includes five women, with two in key portfolios -- a first for the country nonetheless criticised by activists as insufficient and as not living up to a UN commitment. Libya descended into conflict after...
Libya: Authorities find bodies of people in Benghazi likely killed execution style
The bodies of 11 people bearing gunshot wounds were discovered on Thursday in eastern Libya's Benghazi, said a security source, suggesting they had been "executed". "Security forces were alerted on Thursday of the presence of 11 unidentified bodies at the southern...
Repression: How the Egyptian army destroyed the Sinai in the name of the “war on terror”
Egyptian troops have demolished more than 12,300 buildings in the Sinai Peninsula since 2013 in a campaign of forced evictions that likely amount to "war crimes", Human Rights Watch said Wednesday. A decade-old jihadist insurgency in North Sinai province escalated in...
Libya: Foreign meddlers continue to maintain thousands of mercenaries in Libya
Libya's prime minister-designate demanded the departure Tuesday of an estimated 20,000 foreign fighters as he sought support from lawmakers to help end a grinding civil war in the North African nation. Oil-rich Libya descended into chaos after dictator Moamer Kadhafi...
Senegal braces for Jihadist spillover from the Sahel
Senegal's President Macky Sall said Tuesday that his native country and neighbouring West African states must "prepare to do battle" to stop jihadist expansion beyond the Sahel. In an interview broadcast that day by French radio RFI, the president also urged a more...
Egypt-USA: Biden administration maintains support to Egypt’s Sisi, sells him more weapons
US President Joe Biden's administration on Tuedsay approved a nearly $200 million arms sale to Egypt but vowed to press human rights issues after a US activist reported harassment of his family. The Biden administration -- which has vowed to end support for Saudi...
Libya: Mortar attack on Sebha kills child
The United Nations on Wednesday condemned a suspected "targeted mortar attack" in southern Libya that it said killed a child and wounded 29 people. The reported attack in the Sebha region, some 650 kilometres (400 miles) south of the capital Tripoli, took place on...
INSURGENCIES & TERRORISM
Libya: Islamic State strikes again, attacks town in south of Libya
Tripoli, May 9, 2019 - Two civilians were killed and four captured Thursday in a southern Libyan town held by strongman Khalifa Haftar, in an attack claimed by the Islamic State group, sources said. Gunmen in more than 10 vehicles launched the attack on Ghodwa early...
Libya: Haftar’s army says it downed warplane, captured “foreign mercenary”
Tripoli, May 7, 2019 - Troops loyal to Libyan military commander Khalifa Haftar said Tuesday they shot down a warplane and captured its foreign "mercenary" pilot near the capital Tripoli. The Mirage F1 was downed in Al-Hira region, 70 kilometres (43 miles) south of...
Libya: Despite the start of Ramadan, warlord Haftar maintains his destruction of Tripoli
Tripoli, May 6, 2019 - Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar, who launched an offensive against Tripoli last month, has urged his troops to teach unity government forces an "even harder lesson", as the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan begins. Haftar's self-styled Libyan...
Libya: Lawmakers slam Haftar’s assault on Tripoli
Tripoli, May 2, 2019 (AFP) - Dozens of Libyan lawmakers supporting the internationally-recognised government on Thursday condemned an offensive by commander Khalifa Haftar on Tripoli, as they staged a meeting in the capital. The legislators have announced a boycott of...
Libya: As killings of civilians continue in Tripoli, UAE uses “terrorism” to justify its support of warlord Haftar
Opinion by Arezki Daoud: There is no mystery as to who support warlord Haftar in his raids on the civilian populations of Tripoli. Using "terrorism" is an old pretext that no one is buying anymore. Egypt, Saudi Arabi and the UAE (I will call collectively them ESU),...
Morocco: Trial of Jihadi suspects postponed
Salé, Morocco, May 2, 2019 - A Moroccan court adjourned on Thursday for two weeks the trial of two dozen suspects charged in connection with the murder of two Scandinavian hikers minutes after it opened. Danish student Louisa Vesterager Jespersen, 24, and 28-year-old...
Libya: Fighting rages in Tripoli, death toll and population displacement increase
Fierce fighting continued over the last two days and overnight on the outskirts of Tripoli between the Khalifa Hafter-led Libyan National Army (LNA) and its aligned forces on the one hand, and forces aligned to the internationally recognized Presidency Council and...
German Chancellor calls for unified European approach to conflicts in the Maghreb and Sahel
Ouagadougou, May 2, 2019 - Europe must adopt a common position to resolve the Libyan crisis, which has boosted unrest in the Sahel, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday in Burkina Faso, a country hard-hit by jihadist violence. Her visit coincided with a...
Libya: Hundreds killed, scores wounded in Tripoli offensive
Espiaa, Libya, April 30, 2019 (By Simon Valmary) - Plumes of smoke rise from the plain south of Libya's capital as troops loyal to the UN-recognised government battle to fend off an assault on Tripoli. On the roof of an abandoned clinic, a fighter surveyed the dry...
Moroccan Jihadists to go on trial for murder of Scandinavian hikers
Rabat, April 30, 2019 - By Hamza MEKOUAR - Two dozen suspects are set to go on trial in Morocco Thursday for offences linked to the gruesome murder of two young Scandinavian hikers late last year that shocked the North African country. Danish student Louisa Vesterager...