Topic: Sahel

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What is Somalia's Al Shabab?

The international community has more questions than answers about the Somali militant group Al Shabab, the target of Kenya's military incursion into Somalia. But they know how it affords food for its troops – and it's not from piracy.
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Keep Calm
West African group mulls intervention in Mali

ECOWAS, a West African regional group, reimposes sanctions and considers military intervention after Mali's coup leaders renege on promise to cede power to civilian rulers. 
Keep Calm
Rains cool off war in South Sudan (+video)

The six month rainy season gives time for Sudan and South Sudan to make progress in resolving differences. But the wet weather will strain the sanitation systems in refugee camps.
Keep Calm
Coup and counter-coup: Mali's military junta retains control of capital

Mali's military junta have kept control of the capital, Bamako, after loyalists of the former president launch a counter-coup. But the junta has lost much of the country to Tuareg rebels.
Keep Calm
Mali coup leaders pledge to hand over power as Tuareg rebels take Timbuktu

Disarray following a March 21 coup has allowed Tuareg rebels to take over much of Mali's north. West African neighbors worry about spillover. 
Libya to Europe: Remember us?

Former Libyan Prime Minister Mahmoud Jibril traveled to Brussels to warn European leaders about the dangers of abandoning their work in Libya before the country is stabilized.
Africa Monitor
Chad: a closer look at the food crisis

The current food crisis in Chad could affect 3.6 million people, writes guest blogger Alex Thurston.
Africa Monitor
7 stories on Africa this week, other than Kony2012

Did you hear we halved poverty while we were all distracted by Invisible Children, asks guest blogger Jina Moore.
Change Agent
International Women’s Day: Innovations lifting women out of poverty

International Women's Day (March 8) celebrates women's achievements. Innovative ideas and programs, such as the 12 below, are helping women better care for themselves and their families.
In Nigeria, Somalia, and Afghanistan: what is a foreign fighter?

In countries where colonial borders don't reflect ethnic or family ties, it's not as easy to decide who is a foreigner. Yet Nigeria has deported 11,000 foreigners in the past six months on suspicion of Islamist sympathies.
Islamist attacks draw Nigeria and US military closer

Dealing with Islamist groups such as Nigeria's Boko Haram will require more than a purely military approach, although Nigeria welcomes training from the US military's Africa Command.
With oil pipeline attack, Niger Delta rebels announce return

After a year long truce, Niger Delta rebel group MEND launched an attack on an oil pipeline. MEND's attacks come as Nigeria's military is struggling with the Islamist Boko Haram movement in the north.
Famine ends in Somalia, as drought looms in West Africa

Aid groups say that improved harvests and food donations have ended risk of starvation, but warn that ongoing war in Somalia could still reverse gains made.
Global News Blog
World reacts to Obama's new military focus on Asia

Chinese newspapers call on China to assert itself, while India and African nations ponder the implications of becoming 'strategic partners' with the US. 
Nigeria dispatches troops to north to stop Boko Haram attacks

The Christmas Day attack on a church is only the latest in string of attacks by the militant Islamist group Boko Haram, who has given Christians living in the north three days to leave the region.
Mali arrests kidnap suspects, Al Qaeda releases pictures of victims

While Al Qaeda is showing signs of waning in southern and western Asia, Al Qaeda-related groups continue to make their presence felt across the African Sahel region.
Famine alert: West Africa still has time to avoid 2012 food crisis

A Famine Early Warning System – which accurately predicted the 2011 drought in the Horn of Africa – warns that millions of West Africans may face a food crisis in 2012.
Africa Monitor
Sahel Blog: European police deploy to the Sahel

Guest blogger Alex Thurston says that in the wake of 9 recent kidnappings, Europe is increasing its police and security presence in Africa's Sahel region affected by Al Qaeda's local affiliate.
Africa Monitor
Sahel grapples with food insecurity

There are major food production shortfalls across the Sahel – the band of countries south of the Sahara – that will jeopardize food availability next year. 
What is Somalia's Al Shabab?

The international community has more questions than answers about the Somali militant group Al Shabab, the target of Kenya's military incursion into Somalia. But they know how it affords food for its troops – and it's not from piracy.
Africa Monitor
Despite Qaddafi's death, the landscape looks ominous in the Sahel

Muammar Qaddafi's death is unlikely to mark the end of the Sahel's Libya troubles, with a steady stream of migrants and Qaddafi loyalists returning home or fleeing.
Global News Blog
Good Reads: Somalia's famine, India's sex selection, and Twitter wars

Today's picks warn that Somalia's famine is about to get worse, give an inside look at sex-selection in India, and poke fun at that Twitter war between Western peacekeepers and the Taliban.
Guns, migrants, mercenaries: Qaddafi's loss is the Sahel's gain

Aside from Qaddafi and his family, up to one million migrants from Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso may leave war-torn Libya, and arms from Qaddafi's arsenal are already showing up in conflict zones as far away as Somalia.
Africa Monitor
As Qaddafi's supporters flee, Libya fallout could impact Darfur

A key Darfuri rebel commander who took refuge in Libya is now back in the region. His return could destabilize an uneasy peace between the rebels and the governments of Sudan and Chad.
Qaddafi Watch
Did Qaddafi flee to Niger? Libyan convoy in Niger is reminder of Sahel's close ties.

Muammar Qaddafi may not be in Niger, but he has lots of friends to Libya's south.
Global News Blog
Good Reads: Libyan rebels' push on Sirte, Nigeria's Boko Haram, Clooney's satellites

Today's stories feature a look at the Libyan rebels' final push on Qaddafi's hometown, Nigeria's Boko Haram, and how George Clooney's satellite project may affect Sudan.