Author: M Barbu

AQIM’s Imperial Playbook: Understanding al-Qa’ida in the Islamic Maghreb’s Expansion into West Africa

In 2021, the United Nations noted the newfound threats of the Group for Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), a branch of al-Qa`ida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), that extended into Burkina Faso and the Ivory Coast, stretching farther yet into Ghana, Togo, and Benin. Had an observer in 2006 had this information presented to them, they might have scarcely believed it. That year, in which AQIM was formed, the group was a thoroughly North African organization and based primarily in Algeria. Fast forward 15 years, how did AQIM end up nearly 1,300 miles away, now posing immediate threats in the states of littoral West Africa?

Méditerranée : selon l’ONU, en 2021, plus de 3000 migrants ont perdu la vie en mer, le double de 2020

Plus de 3000 migrants sont morts l’an dernier en mer alors qu’ils tentaient de rejoindre l’Europe, soit le double du bilan enregistré en 2020, a indiqué l’ONU vendredi.

“Sur ce total, 1924 personnes ont été déclarées mortes ou disparues sur les routes de la Méditerranée centrale et occidentale, tandis que 1153 autres ont péri ou ont été portées disparues sur la route maritime de l’Afrique du Nord-Ouest vers les îles Canaries”, a déclaré une porte-parole de l’agence de l’ONU pour les réfugiés à Genève, Shabia Mantoo.

Plus de 4000 réfugiés nigérians de retour dans le bastion des jihadistes

Plus de 4.000 Nigérians ayant fui les exactions jihadistes dans le nord-est du Nigeria vers le Niger voisin sont rentrés chez eux malgré l’insécurité et des services quasi-inexistants dans la région.

Les travailleurs humanitaires craignent que le retour fin mars des réfugiés à Malam Fatori, dans l’Etat du Borno, épicentre d’une insurrection jihadiste vieille de plus de 10 ans, cause davantage de victimes et de déplacés.

Russia’s war in Ukraine is making Saudi Arabia and the UAE rethink how they deal with US pressure over China

The response of the Gulf Arab states to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has been somewhat revealing of the depth of fissures between the United States and its Gulf allies. The “stress test” United Arab Emirates (UAE) Ambassador to Washington, Yousef Al Otaiba, hinted at on March 3, was on full display in the pushback by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries—particularly Saudi Arabia and the UAE—against pressure from Washington to condemn the invasion and side with Ukraine.

Nigeria: TotalEnergies to Sell Stake in Nigerian Joint Venture

TotalEnergies is the latest multinational to give up its onshore asset for deep-water fields.

French oil major TotalEnergies has announced it will put up for sale its minority stake in a Nigerian oil joint venture.

The firm wants to focus on deep-water fields away from the difficulties of operating in close proximity with local communities, Bloomberg reported Thursday.

Libya is a ‘Market of Human Beings’

Many African migrants and refugees see crossing the Mediterranean Sea as the only chance for a better life. Sally Hayden tells their harrowing stories in My Fourth Time, We Drowned.

As the war in Ukraine rages on, the European Union and the rest of the world is witnessing the biggest influx of refugees into Europe since World War II.

Al-Nusra Leads Education: “Chechen Discourse” Taught in Idleb Schools!

Jabhat al-Nusra is trying to raise a fully ideological generation through its school programs, according to al-Watan.

Widespread controversy has been sparked by images of a lesson plan, adopted by the so-called Tahrir al-Sham’s (HTS) Dar al-Waheed al-Sharif schools, where the terrorist group Jabhat al-Nusra is influential. Accusations have mounted that Jabhat al-Nusra is imposing “jihadist” curricula among children in areas under its control in Idleb.