North Africa’s Security
Security | Defense | Terrorism
Jihadist Expansion Threatens Coastal West Africa
The Sahel is confronting an intensifying insurgency that continues to evolve in scale and complexity. Armed groups such as the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM) and the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (EIGS) are adapting and adjusting their...
SECURITY & DEFENSE
Regional affairs: Tensions rise in Eastern Mediterranean Sea
France said Thursday it was "temporarily reinforcing" its military presence in the eastern Mediterranean Sea amid tensions between neighbours Greece and Turkey over recently-discovered gas reserves. The French military said two Rafale jets would arrive Thursday on the...
Sahel: Chad army unable to contain Boko Haram in Lake Chad
Chad's President Idriss Deby said Saturday that Boko Haram jihadists would continue to wreak havoc in the Lake Chad region despite a huge military offensive against the group earlier this year. Lake Chad -- a marshy region dotted with islands near the border of Niger,...
As tensions escalate in the east Med Sea, Egypt and Greece announce joint economic zone
Cairo, Aug 6, 2020 - Egypt and Greece signed an agreement Thursday to set up an exclusive economic zone in the eastern Mediterranean amid regional tensions over energy resources in the area. Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry announced the deal, which delineates...
Libya: More evidence of Russian meddling in Libya
Washington, July 24, 2020 - Russia continues to supply a broad range of arms to Libyan rebels including fighter jets, air defense missiles, land mines, and armored vehicles through the state-backed mercenary Wagner Group, the US Defense Department said Friday. The...
Turkey accuses third parties of conspiring in Libya
Turkey accused third parties of carrying out "doomed initiatives" to make ground in Libya's conflict on Wednesday, as it tried to bolster support for the Tripoli-based government. Turkey supports UN-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA), which is fighting for...
Tensions mount between Athens and Ankara, Greek navy deploys ships in the Aegean
French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday denounced what he called Turkey's "violation" of the sovereignty of Greece and Cyprus, as tensions mount between Athens and Ankara. "I want once again to reiterate France's full solidarity with Cyprus and also with Greece...
Egypt: Two soldiers and 18 alleged insurgents killed in Sinai’s Bir al-Abd
Egypt's military said it killed 18 suspected Islamist militants in aerial and ground operations in the restive North Sinai region on Tuesday, as part of its battle to quell a long-running insurgency. The army said in a statement that its forces succeeded in foiling...
Libya: Sudan nationals headed to Libya as mercenaries captured at border
Khartoum, July 19, 2020 - Sudanese forces arrested around 160 people on the border with Libya who were en-route to the war-torn neighbouring country to work as "mercenaries", a state-linked paramilitary group said Sunday. "The joint security forces stationed at the...
Libya: Haftar’s supporters still insist on a losing strategy, Egypt ups threats of attack
Benghazi, Libya, July 14, 2020 - A war of words was heating up Tuesday in oil-rich and conflict-torn Libya, where two rival administrations are battling for control and tensions have risen between outside forces Egypt and Turkey. The Libyan parliament aligned with...
Morocco: Four arrested in Nador on suspicion of terrorism
Rabat, July 7, 2020 - Morocco on Tuesday arrested four alleged members of a "terrorist cell" linked to the Islamic State group who had plotted to attack "sensitive sites" in the kingdom, the interior ministry said. The men, aged between 21 and 26, were arrested in...
INSURGENCIES & TERRORISM
Algeria: Police foil suicide attack in Constantine
The North Africa Journal: February 27, 2917: A suicide attack targeting a police station in Bab el-Kantara, in the Algerian province of Constantine, was foiled on February 26, 2017. A suicide bomber was seeking to enter the police station, but was prevented to do so...
Outlook: Yet another cycle of uncertainty for the region
As the armed forces and security services manage to control, to a certain extent, the terror threat, the Greater North Africa region is facing unprecedented political tension, social stress and economic despair. Data for all countries in the North Africa zone,...
Instability in North Africa and Sahel claims over 8,500 deaths in 2016. MEA Risk expects 2017 to be another crisis year
Miami, FL – MEA Risk LLC - The North Africa and Sahel zone witnessed a 16.0% increase in the number of destabilizing critical incidents in 2016 to a total of 11,916, according to MEA Risk LLC. Despite such increase, MEA Risk’s Instability Index, measuring the crisis...
Moscow’s possible lifting of arms embargo on Libya could trigger new violence, setback to Western interests
The North Africa Journal | Jan. 10, 2017 | Hakim Briki: For the period of January 02 to 08, 2017, there were 30 critical incidents in Libya, resulting in 38 deaths. As a result, the MEA Risk Incidents Index for the period was 2.2. The index measures the extent of the...
Tunisia braces for return of militants from war zones, while at odds with Germany over deportation of Berlin attack perpetrator
January 10, 2017 | The North Africa Journal | By Hakim Briki | UN data suggests that some 4,000 Tunisian nationals are fighting alongside Islamic insurgency groups in war zones. They are between 1,000 and 1,500 in Libya, 200 in Iraq, 60 in Mali and 50 in Yemen. The...
Morocco sustains counter-terror campaign, as Prime Minister struggles to set up new cabinet
January 10, 2017: The North Africa Journal: By Hakim Briki: The CIA has warned a number of countries, including Morocco, of a risk of Berlin-like attacks conducted by Islamic State militants in the next few weeks. Local media says the CIA informed the Moroccan...
French military presence in Africa unlikely to change post 2017 presidential elections
January 2017: Despite a deadly year of terror in France, partly tied to the country’s involvement in major conflict zones, Paris is looking to maintain such involvement, and may even increase it. The upcoming presidential elections are not likely to witness a major...
Egypt: Explosion in Maadi, Cairo, several injured
An explosion apparently from a grenade thrown by an attacker was reported on Sunday evening on the Autostrad road near the affluent neighborhood of Maadi in Cairo. The attack injured several people, although authorities refuse to release figures.
Turkey maintains pressure on Islamic State in and out of its territory
Battling on various fronts, Turkey is also facing an aggressive Islam State, which has been responsible for many terror attacks with Turkey. Over the past couple of days, the Turkish military has been increasing its anti-IS campaign both within Turkey proper and...
Morocco remains a moderate risk country, seeks to contain militant groups
Morocco faces a moderate level of security risk, placing it as an intermediate risk country. Indeed the Kingdom faces several risk sources but it has managed, thus far, to successfully control them. From October 25 to November 24, Morocco’s MEA Risk Index was 1.44,...