Photo Credit: Version Daily By Antonia Ward, Columnist ISIS’s strategic use of social media demonstrates the resourcefulness of the terrorist-cum-insurgent organization, which mobilized an estimated 40,000 foreign nationals from 110 countries to join the group.[i] Increasing internet access in both Africa and the Middle East means that ISIS also has a new pool of potential supporters who, … Continue reading ISIS’s Use of Social Media Still Poses a Threat to Stability in the Middle East and Africa
Category: Sub-Saharan Africa
Nigeria’s Misguided Militaristic Strategy Against Boko Haram
By: Alicia Chavy, Columnist Photo Credit: Reuters Despite suffering recent losses of territorial control and military defeats, the Boko Haram threat is far from gone.[i] Since 2015, the Nigerian government has continued to tell its people and the world that the insurgency is under control, while brazen and highly deadly attacks continue to take place … Continue reading Nigeria’s Misguided Militaristic Strategy Against Boko Haram
All Under the Heavens, and More: China’s Increasing Military Presence in Africa
Chinese President Xi Jinping speaks with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, left, during the 2018 Beijing Summit Of The Forum On China-Africa Cooperation – Round Table Conference at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Tuesday, Sept. 4, 2018. Photo Credit: (Lintao Zhang/Pool photo via AP) By: Nick Impson, Columnist On September 3rd, Chinese … Continue reading All Under the Heavens, and More: China’s Increasing Military Presence in Africa
Jihad South of the Sahara: The Local Roots of Transnational Violence
Northern Mali, June 2015. Photo Credit: AFP Photo/Philippe Desmazes By: Tim Cook, Columnist One of the most important keys to understanding an insurgency movement is to recognize the local conditions that allow it to exist. This is particularly apparent in the Sahel region of Africa, where insurgency is fueled by historical ethnic tensions, political contentions, … Continue reading Jihad South of the Sahara: The Local Roots of Transnational Violence
There is No Silver Bullet: The Case for Postponing Libyan Elections
French President Emmanuel Macron welcomed the rival Libyan leaders at Elysee Palace last May. [Etienne Laurent/EPA-EFE] By: Alexander Yacoubian, Columnist The past month’s escalation of violence in Tripoli indicates that Libya lacks the necessary stability and political infrastructure to hold the presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for December. Leaders of Libya’s rival factions agreed … Continue reading There is No Silver Bullet: The Case for Postponing Libyan Elections
The Logic of Pseudo-Operations: Lessons from the Rhodesian Bush War
By: Xander Causwell, Columnist Photo by: theselousscouts.com During the Rhodesian Bush War (1964-1979) the white minority-controlled Rhodesian government carried out a remarkably successful counterinsurgency campaign against insurgent groups representing the disenfranchised black majority by relying heavily on the use of pseudo-operations. Pseudo-operations constitute a set of tactics government-controlled paramilitary units use to infiltrate insurgent-controlled territory … Continue reading The Logic of Pseudo-Operations: Lessons from the Rhodesian Bush War
Rising Security Threats Hinder G5 Forces’ Effectiveness in Mali and the Sahel
French President Emmanuel Macron (C) and Mali's President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita (2-R) review troops during a visit to France's Barkhane counter-terrorism operation in Africa's Sahel region in Gao, northern Mali, on May 19, 2017. French President's visit in Mali is his first trip outside Europe since his inauguration on May 14, 2017. / AFP PHOTO … Continue reading Rising Security Threats Hinder G5 Forces’ Effectiveness in Mali and the Sahel
Cracks in Haftar’s Coalition? Internal Challenges to a Strongman’s Political-Military Alliance
By: Kevin Truitte, Columnist Photo by: The Guardian Rogue general Khalifa Haftar has emerged as the preeminent military and political leader in eastern Libya. Since declaring his goal of defeating Islamist groups and “liberating” the country in 2014, Haftar has built a political-military coalition of forces in eastern Libya, including the self-styled Libyan National Army … Continue reading Cracks in Haftar’s Coalition? Internal Challenges to a Strongman’s Political-Military Alliance
US Counterterrorism in the Horn of Africa: A Chance for Ethiopian-Eritrean Cooperation?
By: Harvey Granger, Guest Columnist Photo by: http://www.dvidshub.net In August 2017, Congressman Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) encouraged the formation of a military partnership between the United States and Eritrea.[[i]] The question is, could a US-Eritrean partnership, added to an existing US-Ethiopian partnership, contribute towards amity between these rival neighbors? Ethiopia has been a major player in … Continue reading US Counterterrorism in the Horn of Africa: A Chance for Ethiopian-Eritrean Cooperation?
The Islamic State in North Africa: Assessing the Potential of a Maghrebi Offshoot
By Ben Schaefer, Columnist Photo by: Associated Foreign Press With the recent fall of the Islamic State (IS) in Iraq and Syria, the time is ripe to speculate on the caliphate’s next moves. Discord and chaos in North Africa—from Libya’s fractured political landscape to Tunisia’s returning foreign fighters—leads IS analysts and foreign policy practitioners to … Continue reading The Islamic State in North Africa: Assessing the Potential of a Maghrebi Offshoot