UN retreat from Mali in disarray as violence surges

Before United Nations peacekeepers hurriedly abandoned their base in Kidal in northern Mali on Tuesday, they made a costly call: with insurgents stationed nearby, they destroyed sensitive equipment to avoid it falling into the wrong hands, the U.N. said.

Mali Army Airstrikes Blamed for Civilian Deaths in Rebel-held Town

Mali’s army said Tuesday it carried out airstrikes on what it called terrorist targets in the rebel stronghold of Kidal, where witnesses and separatists said civilians, including children, died in the attack.

The armed forces said on social media that the strikes “neutralized several terrorist pickup trucks” at a military camp evacuated by U.N. peacekeepers last week in the strategic northern town.

Au Sahel, une personne se fait kidnapper par jour

Selon une étude de chercheurs en sécurité, 180 personnes ont été enlevées au Mali et au Burkina Faso dans la première moitié de l’année.

Patrick se souvient encore de tous les détails. C’était le 15 juin dernier. Il était assis dans un bus qui roulait sur la route nationale 15, dans le centre du Mali. Tout d’un coup, le conducteur arrête son véhicule : des terroristes djihadistes lui bloquent la route.

Mali : des civils tués dans des frappes à Kidal

Entre six et huit personnes, dont plusieurs enfants, ont été tuées mardi (07.11) par des frappes dans le nord du Mali.

” C’est à 7h30 ce matin qu’on a entendu la première frappe de drone. Nous avons appris qu’il y a eu huit morts parmi lesquels on dénombre des enfants”, confie un habitant de Kidal qui a requis l’anonymat pour des raisons de sécurité.

The Attempted Coup in Niger: Avoiding Armed Conflict

On 26 July, high-ranking Nigerien officers announced on national television that they had overthrown President Mohamed Bazoum, who was democratically elected in 2021. In this Q&A, Crisis Group analysts lay out the reasons for the coup as well as the stakes going forward.

Keeping Jihadists Out of Northern Côte d’Ivoire

What’s new? As jihadist groups in the Sahel move southward, Côte d’Ivoire has beefed up its security deployment in the north and rolled out a range of social projects to alleviate poverty and youth unemployment. Militant violence has subsided since a series of attacks in the north between 2020 and 2021.

Containing Militancy in West Africa’s Park W

Insurgents have established bases in an important nature reserve spanning parts of Benin, Burkina Faso and Niger. They pose a growing danger to local ecosystems and people living around the park. The three countries need to collaborate more closely to keep the threat at bay.

Nord du Mali : une confrontation dont personne ne sortira vainqueur

Au Mali, les combats ont repris entre l’armée appuyée par Wagner et une coalition de groupes armés signataires de l’accord de paix de 2015, mettant en péril le processus de paix. Ibrahim Maïga et Ibrahim Yahaya Ibrahim expliquent les raisons de ces affrontements et ce que les deux belligérants ont à y perdre.

Comment les combats se sont-ils intensifiés au nord du Mali ?

Time to Try Again to End Sudan’s War

Amid shifting military dynamics, a narrow window for dialogue about stopping the fighting in Sudan may have opened. But diplomacy is in disarray. Outside actors should urgently coordinate efforts to steer the belligerents toward a negotiated end to hostilities.