Africa

The United States ambassador to Somalia says the US once again will have a permanent diplomatic presence in the country after it opens offices in Mogadishu later this year. The US embassy was closed in 1991 as the Horn of Africa nation slid into decades of chaos. Former Secretary of …

The foreign ministers of Algeria and France on Tuesday urged Libya’s rival armed factions to seek a political solution in the North African country to help stem the spread of militant groups there and potential spillover across its borders. Algeria has joined with North African neighbor Tunisia to seek support …

Egypt’s military says its air force has killed 12 “extremely dangerous” militants in airstrikes in northern Sinai, a militant hotspot. In a Tuesday statement, the armed forces said the strikes also destroyed four vehicles as it targeted a “terrorist stronghold” of the local Islamic State affiliate, formerly known as Ansar …

At least 40 people were killed in clashes on Tuesday in the Central African Republic, aid and security sources said, the day after the signing of a ceasefire deal. The violence in the central town of Bria was between members of Christian ‘anti-balaka’ militias and ex-Seleka fighters, the sources said.

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım will make a working visit to Greece on June 19 at the invitation of Greek his counterpart Alexis Tsipras, ahead of Cyprus reunification talks in Switzerland. During his visit to Athens, Prime Minister Yıldırım will be received by Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos. Yıldırım’s visit is …

Mali’s foreign minister on Friday pressed the UN Security Council to quickly adopt a resolution endorsing the creation of a special force to fight the jihadists increasingly plaguing north Africa’s Sahel region. The minister, Abdoulaye Diop, expressed the “deep concern” of Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, who heads a five-nation …

Islamic extremists who stormed a resort area in Mali popular with foreigners killed five people, including a Portuguese soldier who had been serving in the European Union mission to stabilize this West African country wracked by mounting extremism, authorities said on Monday. The death toll rose after a Malian soldier …

French President Emmanuel Macron was in Morocco on Wednesday on a 24-hour visit for talks on battling terrorism as well as the Libyan conflict and Qatar’s dispute with its Gulf neighbours. As he stepped off the plane for his first visit to Morocco since his election in May, the French …

France’s foreign minister said on Thursday he was confident “we will get there” in convincing a reluctant United States to give United Nations backing to an anti-jihadist force drawn from five African countries. Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger, which make up the so-called G5 Sahel, have agreed to …

The European Union has announced a support package of nearly $160m for recovery and reconstruction in Nigeria’s Borno state, which has been devastated by attacks from homegrown Islamic extremist group Boko Haram. The EU said on Thursday the northeastern state is facing a worsening humanitarian crisis. The United Nations has …