ADF

Nearly three decades after Egypt launched its first satellite into orbit, the African Space Agency opened its doors in Cairo with a mission to expand the continent’s role in space. Based at the Egyptian Space City, the agency, known as AfSA, is tasked with coordinating the work of Africa’s various space programs as well as ensuring access to space-derived data, information, services, and products. The agency was established by the African Union (AU) in 2018. “Space activities across the continent have been very fragmented,” Meshack Kinyua, the African Union’s space applications training officer said. “The [agency] … places all African…

Unmanned surface vehicles are becoming increasingly popular in the fight against sea crimes, including illegal fishing. Such vehicles, also known as USVs or maritime drones, can be used to detect suspicious activities without endangering personnel and can be equipped with artificial intelligence autonomy systems to gather, process and transmit information. Their enhanced communication systems enable seamless data sharing with command centers and improve situational awareness through persistent surveillance and reconnaissance missions. According to Engineering News, cutting-edge USVs include sensor suites with cameras, sonar, radar and acoustic systems to give operators a complete picture of the environment. They may include military-grade sensors…

As militaries work to improve security in Africa, one area is a persistent weak spot: borders. Often porous, poorly demarcated and neglected by the state, they are a haven for crime and terrorism. During the African Land Forces Summit (ALFS) held in Accra, Ghana, in April, commanders from across the continent called for better cooperation and innovative approaches to secure shared borders. “Most countries are faced with the same problem, which is the porosity of our borders,” Brig. Gen. K.T. Sesay, chief of Army staff of Sierra Leone told ADF. “It’s quite challenging, and we have land where there are…

Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) used drones loaded with explosives when they killed 12 Cameroonian Soldiers and wounded 10 more in a March attack on a military base in the northeastern Nigerian town of Wulgo. The Soldiers were part of the Multinational Joint Task Force working to combat terrorism in the area. Supply chains for such weaponry are limited in the Sahel, but terror groups linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group often use military weaponry seized during attacks on African militaries to perpetrate further violence. This is according to a new report by…

A team of Humvees drove through a complex of buildings and screeched to a halt, leaving behind plumes of dust as Soldiers launched themselves out in unison. With precise coordination, they cleared buildings with flashbang grenades and assault rifles firing blanks. The live-action sequence featuring a joint team of Ivoirian Special Forces and Rangers from the United Kingdom was one of the highlights of Exercise Flintlock, which began in Jacqueville, Côte d’Ivoire, on April 22 and concluded on May 14. Flintlock has increased combat readiness and built trust among partner nations for 20 years, creating a strong front against shared…

Experts say a surge of attacks by terrorist groups around Mali’s southwestern border indicates an intention to expand across the border into Senegal. Based in Mali and backed by al-Qaida, the Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) coalition of terrorist groups increased its attacks sevenfold between 2021 and 2024 in Mali’s Kayes region, according to a new report by the Timbuktu Institute think tank. “JNIM has exponentially increased its activities in Kayes, Mali’s border region with Guinea, Mauritania and Senegal,” the institute stated in its May 2025 report. “These activities include complex attacks on security forces, civilian coercion and the criminal…

The murder of 31 civilians in Omdurman’s Salha neighborhood at the end of April has prompted Sudan’s government to repeat its call for the international community to label the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) a terrorist organization. “This terrorist crime by the militia has shaken the human conscience,” Sudan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in statement. While individual RSF commanders are under international sanctions, the RSF is not. The call to define the RSF as terrorists echoed one that Sudan’s de facto leader, Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, made in 2024. Like that one, this call produced little reaction among other nations.…

A young Togolese student was lured to Russia last year by a scholarship offer. But instead of studying at a university, he was sent to the front lines of Russia’s war with Ukraine, where he was one of several Togolese nationals captured and detained by Ukrainian forces. The Martin Luther King Movement (MMLK), a Togolese human rights organization, alerted authorities to the young man’s case in March. In a statement, the MMLK said the man received his study visa at the Russian Embassy in Cotonou, Benin, and left for Russia on August 21, 2024. “Arriving in Russia, he was forced…

Tunisia has received two 34-meter, Island-class patrol boats from the United States government  to increase the country’s ability to secure its 1,148-kilometer coastline, which faces smuggling, organized crime and terrorism threats. The boats, named Tazarka and Menzel Bourguiba, were previously part of the U.S. Coast Guard fleet. They were refurbished and modernized before being transferred to Tunisia. According to Military Africa, the boats can reach speeds of 29.5 knots and have an operating range of more than 3,000 nautical miles. They have a 25-millimeter Mk 38 machine gun, two .50 caliber machine guns, and feature advanced radar and navigation systems.…

In response to recent advances by al-Shabaab, Turkey boosted its military presence in Somalia to protect buildings and critical infrastructure, such as the port, from terrorist attacks. “The Turkish troops are there solely to protect Turkish assets and to train and advise Somali forces. They will only engage al-Shabaab if absolutely necessary and in self-defense,” one unnamed source familiar with Turkey’s operations in Somalia told Middle East Eye. The deployment of 500 counterterrorism troops nearly triples Turkey’s current contingent of 300 people in Somalia. The new contingent includes 300 commandos and 200 personnel that will enhance Turkey’s drone operations against…