First Independent Mena Newspaper
As the war in Ukraine winds down, African leaders are increasingly alarmed by reports that Russia may be sending ex-convicts disguised as mercenary forces to the continent. These individuals, initially recruited to fight on the Ukrainian front, are now feared to be relocated to Africa, raising concerns over escalating violence and instability. Reports suggest that […]
Human rights advocates and local politicians in the Central African Republic (CAR) have accused Russia-backed mercenaries for being behind the disappearance of two soldiers, amid a mountain evidence pointing to crimes, including murder, torture, execution, abductions, rape, theft, that are credibly linked to Wagner forces and their successor entities. The two soldiers, ,Celestin Bakoyo and […]
Guinea’s military junta, led by Colonel Mamady Doumbouya, is facing mounting resistance from the country’s resilient civil society and pro-democracy movement as it seeks to extend its hold on power. Since seizing power in a 2021 coup, Doumbouya’s government has delayed its promised return to constitutional order, now eyeing elections for 2025 after missing a […]
The recent withdrawal of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger from the regional ECOWAS bloc has drawn attention to the escalating security crisis in the Sahel region where JNIM, an umbrella coalition of aligned groups, is fast emerging as a dominant jihadist force. These countries, now members of the newly formed Alliance of Sahel States (AES), […]
The European Union is confronting significant challenges in maintaining its long-standing ties with Africa, as it faces rising competition from China and Russia in the region, according to experts. While the EU has been Africa’s biggest export market for years, it has lost ground to these emerging powers, particularly in trade and security. In recent […]
A brutal ambush by suspected jihadists in northeastern Mali on Friday (7 February) left more than 50 people dead, amid worsening insecurity in a region long plagued by violence from jihadist groups linked to ISIS and al-Qaeda. The attack occurred near the village of Kobe, about 30 kilometers from the city of Gao, when a […]
A political storm is brewing in the Central African Republic over 30,000 tons of Russian diesel that seems to have vanished into thin air. The Republican Bloc for the Defense of the Constitution has thrown down the gauntlet, demanding answers about a fuel donation that exists more in whispers than in official ledgers. Martin Ziguélé, […]
The Kremlin has announced the expansion of the list of “friendly and neutral” African countries whose banks may now trade currencies and derivatives in Russia. By adding Nigeria, Tunisia and Ethiopia to the list, “the number of friendly and neutral countries whose credit institutions and brokers will be allowed to trade on the Russian foreign […]
Russia has reportedly delivered military equipment, including tanks, armored vehicles, and artillery systems to Mali, which observers suspect may have been moved there from Syria following the departure of Russian troops after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime. According to reports from Defense Web, Africa’s leading defense news portal, Mali could be another recipient of […]
Libya’s renegade general Khalifa Haftar reportedly offered Russia a military base near the border with Chad and Sudan, confirming Moscow’s ambitions to make Libya its new African hub, replacing Syria, Italian news agency Nova said. Citing Libyan sources, Nova said Russia was transferring equipment and soldiers to the Maaten Al Sarra base in southern Libya […]