Africa

Mali attacks mastermind arrested

A Mauritanian man suspected of planning and carrying out deadly attacks on popular tourist venues in Mali last year has been arrested in the Malian capital Bamako, security sources told AFP on Friday. Detained on Thursday in a Bamako suburb, the man is believed to have taken part in attacks …

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Nearly 145,000 Malian refugees still living in neighbouring countries

Nearly 145,000 Malian refugees have been living in neighbouring countries since the outbreak of the security crisis in Northern Mali in 2012, said the UNHCR office in Bamako. “Up to 31 March 2016, some 60,300 Malian refugees live in Niger, 50,600 in Mauritania and 33,800 in Burkina Faso,” according to …

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Protesters ransack security installations at Kidal airport in northern Mali

Angry protesters on Monday forced their way into Kidal airport in northern Mali and set security installations on fire, besides ransacking the runway, the UN Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) said in a statement. “Kidal runway is crucial for supply of humanitarian aid, for support of the local populations as well …

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Tunisia, EU discuss bilateral cooperation

Tunisia and the European Union (EU) stressed their “common engagement on special partnership and the work ahead to build a deeper cooperation, reflecting the exception of the Tunisian transition and the shared ambition to intensify co-operation relations in all fields.” In a joint declaration by Minister of Foreign Affairs Khemaies …

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Kerry visits Egypt

US Secretary of State John Kerry expressed support for Egypt during a brief stop in Cairo on Wednesday before he attends a summit of Gulf states in Saudi Arabia. Ties between Washington and Cairo have improved since the United States lifted a freeze on military aid that it had imposed …

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Egypt, Italy and Algeria call for political solution in Libya

Algeria, Egypt and Italy on Sunday called for a political solution in Libya, on the eve of UN-mediated talks aimed at forming a unity government in the war-torn country. Libya plunged into chaos after a 2011 Nato-backed uprising toppled and killed veteran dictator Muammar Gaddafi, with heavily armed former rebels …

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Mali, Libya crises to top agenda as Hollande visits Algeria

French President Francois Hollande heads to Algeria on Monday as the two nations, once bitter foes, work ever closer to resolve the political turmoil and jihadist threat in Mali and Libya. The trip will be Hollande’s second to Algiers since a 2012 visit during which he recognised France’s century of …

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Algeria official in Libya in fresh support for unity govt

Algeria hopes to reopen its Libya embassy soon, the country’s minister of Maghreb affairs said on Wednesday as he visited Tripoli in the latest show of support for the UN-backed government. Algeria hosted several rounds of UN-brokered Libyan peace talks that helped paved the way for a December power-sharing deal …

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14 militants killed, large war arsenal discovered in southern Algeria

Algeria said on Sunday 14 armed militants have been killed since March and a big load of war arsenal discovered in the southeastern province of El Oued as part of a wide scale counter-terrorism operation. “After killing 14 terrorists last month in the locality of Kouinine and retrieving a large …

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