ADF

Nine months after Russia replaced and rebranded its mercenaries in Mali as Africa Corps, the mercenaries’ involvement in counterterrorism there has dropped off dramatically, leaving Malian soldiers to carry more of the burden. According to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data project (ACLED), battles involving Russian fighters in Mali dropped from 537 to 402 between 2024 and 2025, a reduction of more than 33%. ACLED reported just 24 incidents per month since the beginning of 2026. Russia’s shrinking battlefield footprint coincided with the deployment of Africa Corps and its more hands-off approach compared to Wagner’s frequent use of brutal…

A disagreement between Kenya and Somalia continues over a 92,389-square-kilometer maritime zone that has long attracted international energy companies. The United Nations’ International Court of Justice (ICJ) in 2021 awarded Somalia control of most of the area, but Kenya rejected the legally binding ruling over which the court has no enforcement powers. The countries differ over which direction the boundary follows into the Indian Ocean. Experts such as Siyad Madey, a Kenyan lawyer and policy analyst, say the dispute centers on the question of how much potential energy wealth lies beneath the contested waters, which form part of the Lamu Basin that…

Opioids and other synthetic drugs are increasingly invading parts of Africa, attracting organized crime and overwhelming countries’ medical facilities, according to a new study. The proliferation of synthetic drugs has become a complex threat to public health and regional security, the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime wrote in a March 2026 report. “Synthesis — Mapping Synthetic Drug Markets in West Africa,” concludes that traditional plant-based drugs, controlled by traditional criminal networks, “are gradually giving way to a fragmented and decentralized market of synthetic psychoactive compounds.” The researchers said the synthetic drugs are responsible for overdoses, chronic illnesses, severe mental…

A global study has concluded that Burkina Faso in West Africa is now the country most affected in the world by terrorism, even more than Mali, its troubled neighbor to the north. The latest Global Terrorism Index says that one-fourth of all extremist attacks worldwide, and nine of the world’s 20 deadliest attacks, came in Burkina Faso in 2024. Three such attacks came in late January and early February 2026, as terrorists with Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal- (JNIM) killed at least 38 civilians, abducted nine women and burned property, Human Rights Watch said. The terrorists attacked Sollé village and Tiao…

Batot Air is a cargo service registered in the capital of Burkina Faso. However it appears to fly almost exclusively between the United Arab Emirates and Ethiopia, where Sudan’s military leadership claims the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces operates training camps just over the border from Sudan. An investigation by Le Monde newspaper tracked Batot Air’s activity since it began operating in November 2025. The airline operates Ilyushin-Il76 aircraft that spent the last decade sitting unused in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. According to Le Monde, the cargo planes have made at least 36 trips between the UAE and Ethiopia over the past four…

Medical teams from the Kenya Defence Forces and the United States Armed Forces pointed to a humanitarian outreach as one of Exercise Justified Accord’s best examples of partnership, collaboration and the exchange of expertise. Along with local civilian medical professionals, they delivered critical health care to Samburu County communities during a Medical Civic Action Program (MEDCAP) on February 26 and 27. Kenyan Col. Mohammed Omar, a MEDCAP organizer, said the program reinforced military cooperation and operational readiness. A U.S. officer concurred, saying the outreach demonstrated how joint and multinational teams can rapidly deliver care during humanitarian crises while improving readiness…

Since seven East African nations agreed to launch The Jahazi Project in September 2025, authorities have strengthened protections against illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing. Named after the Swahili word for a dhow, a traditional wooden sailing ship, the project aims to protect the ocean and unlock the potential of the region’s blue economy, which is estimated to reach $405 billion by 2030. The World Bank defines blue economy as “the sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods and jobs, and ocean ecosystem health.” “At its core, the initiative is about restoring balance between economic opportunity and…

An attack on a military outpost in Kofouno, Benin, in early March was the latest demonstration that terrorists with Jama’at Nusrat al‑Islam wal‑Muslimin (JNIM) want to expand their reach into coastal West Africa from their base in the Sahel. The attack in Benin’s northeastern Alibori department killed 15 Soldiers and wounded five others. It followed a larger JNIM assault on military outposts in Wara and Bessassi in 2025 that killed dozens. Like other sites of JNIM attacks in Benin, Kofouno sits near the W-Arly-Pendjari park complex shared by Benin, Niger and Togo, which has become a haven for JNIM and…

The Islamic State group is threatening Libya’s fragile peace and gaining ground in the country by aligning with human smuggling networks, according to experts. These relationships could facilitate the movement of terrorists into Libya through smuggling routes used by irregular migrants in Chad, Mali, Niger and Sudan into southern Libya, Lebanon’s An-Nahar newspaper reported. While the Islamic State (IS) group is present throughout Libya, it is more of a danger in the south, with links to the Sahel, according to The Jamestown Foundation. Its presence is most consistent in the southern Fezzan region, where its logistical networks are used to transport…

The emails are designed to appear authentic. They might offer a prize or warn the recipient about a potential lawsuit. But the odds are high that they are fakes designed to steal crucial personal data or to infect a computer network with malicious software. In 2025, 45% of all emails sent around the globe contained some sort of scam, according to internet security company Kaspersky. The majority of emails targeted internet users in Asia, Europe, and North America. African users accounted for 6% of victims. However, African internet users are becoming a growing target for such attacks as internet access…