First Independent Mena Newspaper
When the French troops launched a military operation in Mali on 11 January, the official places in Paris declared that it was aiming at stopping the advance of Islamists from their bases in the north of the country to its southern part. In this context, analysts have pondered possible reasons that lead to the invasion, […]
Algeria-born jihadist Yahya Abu Hamam, emir of al Qaeda in North Africa, has been added by the US to the list of global terrorists for his key role in the group’s terror activities in the Maghreb and Sahel region. Hamam spent 18 months in jail in Algeria for his terrorist activities. After his release, he […]
In the context of the Arab Spring, the use of the term “Islamism” is very common. The new political elites throughout the North Africa, commonly referred to as the “Islamists”, often talk of replacing the old and more or less authoritarian secular regimes in the Middle East. Journalists also use the term quite excessively and […]
Last December, the U.N. Security Council passed a cautious resolution that outlined steps to be taken before an international military intervention into Mali to deal with the deteriorating security situation in the country. But in a surprise move on 11 January, French President Francois Hollande authorized airstrikes in Mali to stop a sudden southward push […]
At least eight foreigners, including Britons, Norwegian and Japanese nationals were seized Wednesday in Algeria by Islamist militants in an attack on an oil facility in the south-eastern region of the North African country. The terror attack, which targeted a BP gas plant in the town of In Amenas (near the Libyan border), also claimed […]
Algerian military forces have launched lately a large scale combing campaign targeting Islamist militants groups operating in the Boumerdes-Tizi-Ouzou-Bouira triangle, stronghold of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and its affiliates. This campaign comes as the international community braces for military action to dislodge the radical Islamist forces occupying northern Mali after a coup in […]
The newly formed Libyan government has ordered the temporary closure of the country’s borders with four of its neighbors and declared the southern region a restricted military zone. The land borders with Chad, Niger, Sudan and Algeria were shut in a bid to better control and fight “illegal immigration and illicit activities such as arms […]
Tunisia has denied the news reported by French magazine “Marianne” alleging the existence of jihadist training camps on its soil. The Tunisian interior Ministry on Tuesday denied the news that was reproduced by some Tunisian media. “The internal security forces, in collaboration with the national army, closely monitor the border regions and are vigilant in […]
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton started this Monday a visit to Algeria for talks with Algerian officials on the situation in northern Mali, a vast desert area that has been seized by Islamist militant groups following a military coup in the African country last March. Mrs Clinton will join her voice to France’s to […]
The events of the Arab Spring have brought many changes to North Africa and the Middle East. However, it is yet to be seen whether the struggles of North Africans will bring about meaningful positive democratic change in the region. On the one hand, North African terrorist groups were mostly left on the sidelines during […]