ADF

ADF STAFF Nigerian authorities are working to contain a thriving illicit weapons market in Lagos as local manufacturers of illegal guns continuously hone their trade. Local illegal gun factories are known for producing imitation weapons that look like the originals. In October 2023, authorities in Lagos busted a blacksmith’s factory that was a cover for manufacturing illegal firearms. Authorities seized single- and double-barreled guns, pistols, cartridges and drilling machines during the raid, which ended in the arrests of a notorious gang leader and more than 30 suspects. “See how perfect this fabricated AK-47 is. It’s unbelievable,” Nigeria Police Force spokesperson…

ADF STAFF It was after midnight on December 8, 2023, when armed rebels from Cameroon’s English-speaking separatist movement raided the border community of Belegete, firing guns and kicking in doors. Muwah Augustine was visiting his parents when men broke into their house. “I was asleep when the terror group arrived in the night, shooting sporadically at people,” Augustine told HumAngle. “They collected our phones, broke them and gave us the worst beating of our lives.” Three days later, Augustine still was searching for his parents, who vanished during the mayhem. Belegete is a border community without a checkpoint where people…

ADF STAFF New reporting shows how North Korean diplomats stationed in Southern Africa are smuggling large volumes of rhino horn out of the region to buyers in China and other countries. The millions of dollars in proceeds help North Korea evade international sanctions and fund its nuclear weapons program. The illegal trade in wildlife parts is just one strand in the larger web of criminal and illicit activities by North Korea. Historically, North Korea has used its diplomats to conceal money laundering and the smuggling of alcohol, drugs, gold, ivory and tobacco. The money flows into the hands of the…

ADF STAFF Piracy is making a resurgence in the western Indian Ocean, and the region is rife with other sea crimes such as illegal fishing, drug smuggling, and human and weapons trafficking. Against that backdrop, the second edition of the India-Mozambique-Tanzania Trilateral Exercise (IMT TRILAT 24) was held in late March in the southern Mozambican port of Maputo; the northern Mozambican port of Nacala; and Zanzibar, the island off mainland Tanzania. The weeklong exercise enhanced the nations’ maritime security collaboration and increased their understanding of the scope of their maritime capabilities and shared objectives. The first IMT TRILAT was held in…

ADF STAFF Violence between rival communities has a long history in South Sudan, but the past year has seen a worrying rise in attacks that observers fear could become a wider crisis. More than 150 people died and 165 were injured as a string of deadly clashes swept across South Sudan between January 28 and February 6. The last quarter of 2023 saw a 35% surge in the number of civilians affected by violence compared to the previous quarter, as the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) reported that 862 people were either killed, injured, abducted or “subjected to…

ADF STAFF Amid desperate warnings of impending famine across Sudan, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) continues to use hunger as a weapon of war. The yearlong conflict has caused the deaths of more than 12,000 people and the displacement of an estimated 8.3 million. According to the United Nations, 5 million people in Sudan are at risk of “catastrophic” hunger, and more than 18 million are dealing with acute levels of hunger. The RSF has routinely used food and hunger as tools to control civilians. Now it is using those tools to force men and boys in Al Jazira…

ADF STAFF Mozambican authorities are worried that timber smuggling in Cabo Delgado province is funding terror groups such as Ansar al-Sunna, which has led an insurgency there since 2017. The province is rich in valuable wood species such as umbila, pau preto, pau ferro and chanfuta, but illegal timber smuggling has accelerated deforestation, robbing the government and people of much-needed natural resources and about $1.95 million per month, according to the country’s National Terrorist Financing Risk Assessment Report. Weak monitoring of conservation areas and local logging companies renting their licenses to foreign corporations, mostly Chinese, make it easier for timber…

ADF STAFF Ugandan security forces are on high alert after members of the Allied Democratic Forces terrorist organization entered the country from the Democratic Republic of the Congo in mid-March. The Ugandan People’s Defence Forces said the group likely is led by Ahamed Mahamood Hassan, also known as Abu Waqas, a Tanzanian-born bomb expert, and might be planning attacks in urban areas, places of worship, schools, and public events around Kampala and the Mount Rwenzori region. “We call upon on all civilians to be vigilant, identify and report any suspicious individuals or packages to avoid being victims of [Allied Democratic…

ADF STAFF Since the notorious Russian mercenary outfit formerly known as the Wagner Group began reorganizing under the control of the Russian Defense Ministry in 2023, controlling gold mining sites in Mali has been a priority. Russian mercenaries arrived by helicopter near the rural village of Intahaka in the Gao region on February 9 and seized Mali’s largest artisanal gold mine. With the help of the Malian military, the mercenaries secured the site by forcing out a Tuareg rebel group. Control of the sprawling site, which can accommodate as many as 4,000 miners, has changed hands several times in recent…

Many African countries are battling the scourge of illicit trafficking. The illegal trade of drugs, weapons, minerals and wildlife fuels instability. It also deprives states of tax revenue and destroys irreplaceable natural resources.  The networks span the globe. South American drug traffickers use West Africa as a route to move narcotics to Europe and Asia. Chinese mafia organizations move timber, wildlife and minerals from Africa to Asian markets. The Russian Wagner Group has brokered deals with host governments to let it exploit natural resources in exchange for promises of security.  A report by the transnational crime research organization ENACT found…