Mali: Le colonel Goïta, chef de la junte au Mali, un opérationnel peu loquace

Rarement un putschiste installé chef de l’Etat se sera montré aussi peu disert que le colonel Assimi Goïta, nouvel homme fort du Mali décrit comme un opérationnel plus qu’un politique.

“Je suis le président du CNSP”, le Conseil national pour le salut du peuple institué par les putschistes pour diriger le pays: avec les quelques phrases de circonstance qui ont suivi, ces mots prononcés le 20 août sont les seuls entendus en public dans la bouche d’Assimi Goïta depuis le coup d’Etat du 18 août.

Mali: les Six (6) coups d’état qui bouleversent le Mali depuis le 18 Août 2020

Le premier coup d’état a consisté à «dégager» IBK, son clan familial et les affidés du régime.

Cette opération chirurgicale, sans effusion de sang, n’a été possible que du fait du rôle exceptionnel joué par le M5-RFP qui, grâce à une formidable, une puissante et une massive mobilisation citoyenne, a sapé les fondements d’un régime recroquevillé sur lui-même, sourd à la clameur populaire, miné par une corruption abyssale.

Prigozhin’s patriot An oligarch-linked political strategist is running in Russia’s regional elections despite being imprisoned in Libya

Political consultants associated with Evgeny Prigozhin — the catering magnate with alleged ties to mercenaries, troll factories, and Vladimir Putin — are campaigning for the “Rodina” political party’s nominees ahead of regional parliamentary elections in Russia’s Komi Republic. Prigozhin apparently has a vested interest in seeing Rodina’s candidates succeed: first on the party list is another political strategist, Maxim Shugaley, who was working in Libya on Prigozhin’s behalf when Shugaley was imprisoned in July 2019. Meduza’s sources say being elected as a regional deputy could help facilitate his repatriation (though it’s not entirely clear how). Spokespeople for Rodina and Prigozhin deny the oligarch’s direct involvement in the campaign, but his representatives also maintain that he “warmly supports” Maxim Shugaley.

What is Turkey’s endgame in Libya?

Turkey’s reimagining of the Pax Ottomana has not made many friends in the region, and it currently finds itself at odds with Egypt, UAE and Greece to name a few. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has made very clear his ambition that Turkey will be a leader in the Mediterranean and in the Middle East and North Africa region. Turkey’s new strategic direction continues to be conducted with hubris and polemics as Erdoğan envisions Turkey’s role beyond a regional power to a “global one”.

Serraj backs down over sacking his dominant Interior Minister

Faiez Serraj, Libya’s internationally recognized Prime Minister backed down yesterday from sacking Fathi Bashagha, his powerful Misratan Interior Minister. The humiliating climbdown came in the form of an official decree (584) yesterday by Serraj, lifting Bashagha’s ‘‘temporary suspension’’.

Gaddafi’s sons come back to power in Libya?

Nine years after the start of the Libyan revolution and the overthrow and death of Muammar Gaddafi, his 48-year-old son Saif al-Islam is still the only one member of the family who retains influence and political ambitions, trying to return to power. Despite the escalation of armed conflict between the forces of the internationally recognized Government of National Accord and General Khalifa Haftar, both sides shared a hostile position towards the colonel’s son. While Haftar considered Saif al-Islam “the poor boy on whom some naive people are betting,” Faiz Sarraj is confident that he should be extradited to the International Criminal Court. The latter accuses Gaddafi’s son of committing war crimes against the rebels.

Moscow steps up support for pro-Haftar Russian mercenaries in Libya: UN

More than 300 flights arrived in Libya’s east from Syria over six months in breach of an arms embargo, UN report says.

Moscow flew hundreds of military flights into Libya in breach of an arms embargo, as it stepped up its logistical support for a shadowy Russian private military contractor accused of committing war crimes in the North African country, a UN report said.

Haftar Boosts LNA Control of Libya’s South

The Libyan National Army (LNA) under the leadership of Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar confirmed locking its control over Libya’s southern areas, and broadcast video footage on Wednesday showing military units patrolling Libya’s southwest