Africa

Niger army clashes with Boko Haram in Diffa region

Niger’s army has killed 15 Boko Haram Islamic extremists, captured 20 others and destroyed ammunition cars and motorcycles from the militants, a military spokesperson said. The attack in Niger by its military came the night after Boko Haram members had attacked the village of Yebbi in the Diffa region on …

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Tuareg rebels sign Malian peace deal on Saturday

Mali’s Tuareg-led rebel alliance signed a landmark deal on Saturday to end years of unrest in a nation driven by ethnic divisions and in the grip of a jihadist insurgency. The Algiers Accord aims to bring stability to the country’s vast northern desert, cradle of several Tuareg uprisings since the …

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Somalian military base in Mogadishu targeted by attacks

Al-Shabaab militants launched a major suicide attack on Sunday against a military intelligence base in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu, setting off a car bomb before storming inside, security officials said. The interior ministry said the three attackers, one of them a suicide bomber, were all killed in the raid, and that …

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Tripoli forces carry out operations against IS

Libya’s self-declared government in Tripoli carried out air strikes on Islamic State militant positions in the city of Sirte, hitting a building where fighters had gathered, officials and witnesses said. Officials could not give any immediate confirmation of casualties from the late Sunday night strikes. Witnesses reported they were accurate …

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Kerry visits Cairo, meets Egyptian FM

US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Sunday he was “confident” Egypt will receive Apache gunships soon, as he made a surprise visit to Cairo. Kerry became the highest-ranking American official to visit Egypt since President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi came to power after overwhelmingly winning an election in May.

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French Defence Minister visits Mali to support peace deal

French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian visited Mali to show his support for a landmark peace deal agreed in the former colony to end years of unrest and ethnic divisions. Just two days after Mali’s Tuareg-led rebel alliance added its signature to the Algiers Accord — aimed at stabilising Mali’s …

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EU, Sahel countries discuss collaboration against terrorism

EU High Representative Federica Mogherini, met here Wednesday with the foreign ministers of Mali, Mauritania, Nigeria, Chad and Burkina Faso and discussed the EU’s relations with the five countries of the Sahel region. “We have decided to meet regularly at ministerial level and our technical services will work on three …

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US to provide $5m support for regional military force against Boko Haram

The United States plans to provide $5m to help support a regional military force fighting Nigeria’s Islamist militant group Boko Haram, a state department official said on Tuesday. Boko Haram last year held a vast swathe of territory in north-eastern Nigeria of just over 30 000 square kilometres, about the …

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