August, 2016

• 12 August

  Libya pro-government forces seize ISIS headquarters in Sirte

  Pro-government forces said they captured the Islamic State group’s headquarters in their main Libyan stronghold of Sirte on Wednesday, scoring a major victory in a push to oust the jihadists from the city. ISIS fighters remained in several parts of the city, officials said, but seizing control of their headquarters …

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• 12 August

  Mali to hold local polls in November despite unrest

  Voters in Mali will be asked to go to the polls in local elections across the vast Sahel nation in November, despite the threat of attacks by armed Islamists, the government has announced. At a meeting led on Wednesday by President Ibrahim Boubacar Keta, the cabinet “adopted a draft decree …

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• 12 August

  US lawmakers urge Obama on UN arms embargo for South Sudan

  More than a dozen US lawmakers have written to President Barack Obama to urge a UN-imposed arms embargo on South Sudan following heavy fighting in its capital last month. A draft UN Security Council resolution calls for a vote on an arms embargo if the UN secretary-general reports that South …

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• 10 August

  Sisi: Egypt supports peace efforts in South Sudan

  Egypt President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi stressed on Wednesday Egypt’s full support for efforts to restore peace and stability in South Sudan during a meeting with Festus Mogae, the Chairperson of the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (JMEC) for South Sudan, in Cairo. The Egyptian presidency spokesman Alaa Youssef said that El-Sisi …

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• 10 August

  Egypt: Militant attacks kill 12 in Sinai Peninsula

  Twelve people, including two civilians and two soldiers, were killed in three separate militant attacks in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. The source, who spoke anonymously due to restrictions on speaking to media, said gunmen had attacked three army checkpoints in northern Sinai.

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• 10 August

  Mali: Five soldiers missing after clash with militants

  Five soldiers are missing after clashes with militants in central Mali at the weekend, military officials said on Tuesday, in the latest in a string of attacks on army and UN forces claimed by the Islamist group Ansar Dine.

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• 10 August

  Egypt FM meets vice-president of Libyan presidential council

  Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry met on Tuesday the vice president of the Libyan presidential council Ahmed Maetig in Cairo where they discussed the latest developments in Libya, the Egyptian foreign ministry said in a statement.

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• 10 August

  Foreign troops in Libya's Sirte to fight Daesh

  Foreign Special Forces units have been deployed on the ground in Libya’s northern city of Sirte to aid Libyan government forces fighting the Daesh terrorist group, a Libyan military source said Wednesday. “Last week, foreign special operations forces conducted an unprecedented operation [in Sirte] in coordination with government forces,” the …

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• 10 August

  Libyan govt forces close in on ISIS jihadists

  Forces loyal to Libya’s Government of National Accord said on Monday they had seized a new sector near the Islamic State group’s command centre in Sirte. The pro-GNA forces have been engaged in a military operation since May 12 to retake the coastal city located 450km east of Tripoli. Sirte …

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• 10 August

  US asks UN to back South Sudan regional force

  The United States has asked the UN Security Council to send a 4 000-strong regional force to South Sudan’s capital of Juba to impose an arms embargo if the government blocks the deployment. A draft resolution presented to the council would establish the regional protection force and authorise it to …

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