Africa

In a nationally-televised ceremony, Egypt and France signed on Monday evening a deal whereby Cairo purchased 24 French Rafale jet fighters French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drianarrives had arrivted at Egypt’s Ittihadeya presidential palace in Cairo to seal the deal with his Egyptian counterpart Sedky Sobhi.

The Egyptian armed forces carried out an airstrike on the self-proclaimed ‘Islamic State’ in Libya. They hit camps, training sites, and ammunition and weaponry warehouses after 21 Coptic Egyptians were killed on Saturday. The strike, conducted in the early hours of Monday “hit its targets accurately”, an armed forces statement …

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said Monday that his country reserves the right to respond at the proper time to the killing of 21 Coptic Egyptians in Libya by Islamic State (IS) militants. The president said that Egypt would be able to defeat terrorism because “Egypt is defending humanity”. On …

The United Nations High Commission of Refugees UNHCR stressed on Friday that the violence in north-eastern Nigeria has forced more than 157,000 people to flee into the neighboring countries. This large number needs providing urgent aid to the hosting countries – Niger, Chad and Cameroon – to face challenges due …

European Union Foreign Affairs Council, met recently in Brussels, stressed EU’s commitment to international mediation led by Algeria to reach a political, all-inclusive and lasting solution in Mali, the ministry of Foreign Affairs said Thursday in a statement. The council underlined that “EU remains committed to the international mediation, led …

Boko Haram militants attacked a village on the shore of Lake Chad early on Friday, marking the first such violence against the neighbour contributing the most military might to the regional fight against the Nigeria-based terror group. The assault took place in the village of Ngouboua, according to Army Col. …

The United Nations and its partners today launched an appeal for nearly $2 billion to provide vital humanitarian assistance to millions of people in nine countries across Africa’s Sahel region. “I am gravely concerned by the crisis in the Sahel. Families are extremely vulnerable to changes in the climate and …

French President Francois Hollande on Thursday confirmed earlier reports that Egypt has decided to purchase 24 Rafale fighter-bombers, the first foreign sale of the high-performance French aircraft. “The Egyptian authorities have just made known to me today their intention to acquire 24 Rafale fighter planes and a multi-mission frigate as …

The international mediation team of the inter-Malian dialogue Wednesday called on the parties to the conflict to seize the opportunity of the Algiers negotiations as “a unique and historic opportunity” to end the crisis in the country and reach a comprehensive and final agreement likely to boost development in Mali …

At least 17 militants were killed Wednesday during security raids in Rafah and Sheikh Zuweid cities in Egypt’s North Sinai province, a security source said. “Four were killed in land raids while the other 13 were killed in an airstrike,” the source said. He added that the raids destroyed seven …