First Independent Mena Newspaper
West Africa is becoming a central node in global cocaine trafficking, as powerful criminal groups from the Western Balkans expand their footprint across the region, a new report has revealed. Once operating largely behind the scenes, Albanian- and Slavic-speaking networks have now entrenched themselves in countries like Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Sierra Leone, and Cape Verde. These […]
Kenya has become the latest African country that has hired lawyers or lobbying firms with ties to President Donald Trump’s associates to advocate for their interests in Washington, D.C. Kenya has signed a $175,000-a-month lobbying contract with Continental Strategy LLC, a U.S. firm led by ex-Trump official Carlos Trujillo, aiming to boost its influence in […]
Millions of children across Africa are facing a life-threatening nutrition crisis as international aid cuts and armed conflict severely disrupt food supplies, several humanitarian organizations have warned. Humanitarian organizations, including Save the Children and UNICEF, are sounding urgent alarms about the growing number of malnourished children in Nigeria, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan — and besieged […]
The World Food Programme (WFP) and UNICEF have announced the mobilization of $65 million under the Joint Resilience Project Phase II to support nearly one million vulnerable people in South Sudan. The initiative will cover urban and peri-urban communities in Juba, Torit, Yambio, and Aweil, focusing on critical areas such as food security, education, healthcare, […]
The Moroccan judiciary issued its first sentence replacing a custodial sentence with electronic surveillance. The decision, handed down on August 27, marks a significant step toward implementing alternative sentencing measures aimed at reducing prison overcrowding and modernizing penal practices. The case involved a defendant who had been placed in pre-trial detention over the weekend at […]
In the late 1970s, Algeria geared the Polisario towards separatism as it was orchestrating a far more complex and calculated strategy that extended well beyond the borders of the Sahara territory. Through its support for the Polisario militias, Algeria not only advanced its position in the Sahara dispute but also laid the groundwork for a […]
Women and girls across the Sahel region are facing unprecedented and systemic threats as political instability, environmental degradation, and dwindling international support converge to erode their rights and safety, senior UN officials told the Security Council. Sima Bahous, Executive Director of UN Women, painted a grim picture of life for women in countries such as […]
Morocco’s centuries-old rotating savings system, known locally as “daret” or tontine, is undergoing a digital transformation aimed at addressing the financial exclusion affecting 53 percent of the country’s adult population. The new mobile application, developed by former French banking executives Nabil Chakir and Mourad Chokeir, seeks to modernize this informal financial practice while preserving its […]
Interpol has announced the arrest of over 1,200 suspected cybercriminals across 18 African nations and the United Kingdom as part of a sweeping three-month operation targeting cyber fraud, cryptocurrency scams, and transnational crime. Dubbed Operation Serengeti 2.0, the crackdown ran from June to August 2025 and resulted in the dismantling of more than 11,000 cybercrime […]
Moscow has accused the Algerian junta of facilitating the transfer of Ukrainian drones and military equipment to terrorist groups operating in the Sahel countries. The Russian accusation was made by Alexander Ivanov, director of the Officers Union for International Security and reported by Russian news agency TASS. Ukrainian special services are using the diplomatic cover […]