ADF

ADF STAFF Tuareg community leader Sheikh Mohamed and his family were among the hundreds of Talataye residents who fled their homes after militants affiliated with the Islamic State group attacked in September 2022. It was part of an all-too-familiar surge of violence in Mali, where several extremist groups control large parts of the rural north and center regions. “Our homes were burned and cattle killed by Daesh,” he said, using the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State. “We have lost everything.” Mohamed and his family trekked 145 kilometers west through the desert to Gao, the regional capital, where they settled…

ADF STAFF Sometimes it starts with a violent threat written in graffiti on a school wall. When heavily armed extremists arrive on motorcycles, the terror ensues — teachers are shot, kidnapped, raped. Some are executed in front of the children. School buildings are set on fire. Some are burned beyond repair. Violent extremists in the Sahel have declared war on education. Their target is not just teachers and children but the fabric of society. “Targeting schools is a key strategy for extremist militant groups, as schools are often the only symbol of the state’s presence in remote villages and teach…

ADF STAFF Nearly a year before hostilities broke out between Sudan’s rival generals, a private jet touched down at an airfield in Khartoum. Members of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) met the plane during its brief visit. On board, according to reports, was a package of high-end surveillance technology known as Predator. RSF members, led by Gen. Mohamed Hamdan “Hemedti” Dagalo, quickly ferried the package to their stronghold in Darfur before it could be intercepted by the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF), led by Hemedti’s rival, Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan. According to investigators at Lighthouse Reports, the surveillance technology has “the…

ADF STAFF As fighting continues in Sudan, it is not just the Sudanese people who are fearful for their future. The entire region is anxiously watching the developments. The mass exodus of refugees and the threat that the conflict could spill across borders make this a particularly perilous time for the Horn of Africa and Red Sea region. “The risk of a regional spillover is high given Sudan’s geostrategic importance at the intersection of the Indian Ocean, Horn of Africa and Arab world,” wrote Miriam Berger for The Washington Post. “From seven sides, Sudan’s neighbors are watching.” Egypt: The two…

ADF STAFF Burkina Faso has struggled with extremist violence pouring out of neighboring Mali since 2015. But November 14, 2021, became a tipping point for the Sahelian nation.  That morning, extremist gunmen stormed a military police outpost near a gold mine in the northern town of Inata in Burkina Faso’s Soum province. The results were sudden, tragic and transformational. “This morning a detachment of the gendarmerie suffered a cowardly and barbaric attack,” Security Minister Maxime Kone told state media as bodies still were being counted. “They held their position.” As it turns out, 49 gendarmes were murdered along with four…

ADF STAFF For centuries, scholars have studied how best to prepare Soldiers to make ethical decisions. Why do some units choose to violate laws by looting or abusing civilians? Why do others choose to put themselves in harm’s way to save a life? At the extreme, why do some troops plot and carry out coups while others steadfastly refuse to become involved in politics?  For those who have tried to mold ethical Soldiers, it comes down to one word: professionalism. Some militaries embody the highest values of their profession while others fall short. “It is imperative that the institutions of…

ADF STAFF Military professionals have a stake in the well-being of their fellow citizens. One way military personnel can show their commitment is through medical civic action programs (MEDCAP). These programs typically are conducted during joint or multilateral training and peacekeeping missions. They serve as temporary field clinics to provide medical services to local populations. On August 31, 2022, Ghana Armed Forces personnel from 6 Infantry Battalion participated in a MEDCAP in Yendi, Ghana, where Soldiers such as this Ghanaian nurse performed eye exams and other services.

ADF STAFF When war broke out in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region in 2020, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed quickly ordered the severing of the region’s internet and telephone connections. Abiy’s order cast Tigray into an information blackout, making it nearly impossible for the rest of the country and the world to know what was going on there as fighting and human rights violations escalated. Abiy’s order ran counter to democratic progress in the country. It also served as a catalyst for more protests and fighting. “It’s like they turned the clock back 30 years,” Eyassu Gebreanenia, a resident of the Tigrayan…

ADF STAFF Coups and coup attempts have made a resurgence on the continent in the past few years. In the face of extremist violence, outside interference and political instability, militaries can prevent coups by reinforcing their professional principles.  These principles are the bedrock that have helped security forces preserve peace and support democratic governance for so long in so many countries. Although there is no guarantee that any country can avoid an unconstitutional change in government, there are certain security sector reform measures that organizations can take to lessen the likelihood of a coup. Listed below are expert recommendations on…

AFRICA CENTER FOR STRATEGIC STUDIES On the sidelines of the U.S. Africa Leaders Summit in Washington, D.C., the Africa Center for Strategic Studies conducted a dialogue with senior African security officials on December 14, 2022. ADF has edited the ACSS report for length and to conform to the magazine’s format. “The armed forces in many African countries represent a threat to security because of their lack of military professionalism.” This was an assessment by Gen. Mbaye Cissé, national security advisor to the president of Senegal, speaking to senior security officials from 30 African countries at an Africa Center for Strategic…