Africa

The eastern-based Libyan army said Monday that it will hand over the oil crescent region to the National Oil Corporation of the eastern-based interim government. The army spokesman Ahmed Mismari told a news conference in the eastern city of Benghazi that the army commander Khalifa Haftar made the decision to …

Naval and air forces of Egypt, Greece and Cyprus began a joint military drill on Monday along Egypt’s Mediterranean coast, the Egyptian army said.The exercise, dubbed “Medusa 6,” came as part of the effort to boost the “distinguished relations” among the three countries, the army said in a statement.It said …

Egypt President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi has affirmed that Egypt supports efforts to form a strong national Iraqi government that represents all Iraqis. During his meeting with Iraqi Vice President Ayad Allawi, Sisi welcomed political talks carried out by Iraqi blocs and stressed that Egypt backs any outcome.

Africa is home to more than 10 000 jihadists from the Islamic State group and al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, Morocco’s foreign minister told a meeting of the US-led coalition on Tuesday. “Within the framework of the evolution of the strategy of Daesh (ISIS), Africa is among the most targeted …

The Libyan eastern-based army on Sunday urged the displaced people of the eastern city of Darna to return after their homes have been secured. “The commander of the army’s operations chamber, General Abdussalam al-Hassi, called upon all the residents of Darna who were displaced during the military operations to return …

A US Treasury official is urging East African governments to tighten the loopholes that allow illicit money from war-torn South Sudan to cross into regional capitals. Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Sigal Mandelker said in Uganda on Monday that authorities in countries like neighbouring Uganda must make it …

The European Union urged Mali’s government on Monday to respect “freedom of expression” and “show restraint” after dozens of people were hurt in banned opposition protests two months ahead of presidential elections. “The EU stresses the importance of the respect of fundamental freedoms, and in particular the freedom of expression, …

Libyan military strongman Khalifa Haftar said on Monday that victory was near for his forces in Derna, the eastern city held by jihadists since the 2011 armed uprising. Haftar’s self-styled Libyan National Army launched an offensive on May 7 to “liberate” the coastal city, home to about 150 000 people …

The US military says it has carried out an airstrike in northern Somalia that killed 27 al-Shabaab extremists. The statement issued on Monday by the US Africa command said it assesses that no civilians were killed in the attack on Sunday

An adviser of the head of Libya’s UN-recognized government based in Tripoli has tweeted that the country’s rival leaders have reached consensus at a Paris meeting to hold both parliamentary and presidential elections in battered Libya on December 10.