ADF

In late January, South Africans discovered their national weather service had been taken offline by a cyberattack from an unknown source. The attack that took down the weather service on January 26 followed a failed attempt the day before, according to South African officials. The breach did not block the service from using its weather forecasting technology, but it did block the service’s ability to report aviation and marine forecasts and shut down its email system and website. The cyberattack also affected Mozambique, Zambia and other countries that rely on South Africa for weather forecasts. The attack against the South…

Russia has expanded its military presence in Libya by transferring personnel and equipment to the Maaten al-Sarra base near the borders with Chad and Sudan, an Italian news agency reported. The base had been abandoned since 2011. In December, Russia deployed Syrian soldiers to reestablish the base, from which Moscow can directly supply Burkina Faso, Mali and Sudan, the news agency Nova reported. Russian technicians and Syrian troops have restored runways and warehouses at the base, which still needs new housing, warehouses, control towers and security fences. A major military convoy aligned with Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, who leads the…

Many of the Nigerian security forces who have fought Boko Haram and Islamic State-affiliated terrorists struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health challenges long after serving their country on the battlefield. In the course of duty, some members of the military experience or witness terrible violence that can induce long-term effects such as severe anxiety, intrusive thoughts, flashbacks and nightmares. Chioma Onyemaobi, lead psychologist for the Abuja-based HumAngle Foundation, recently warned of the often-overlooked psychological and emotional challenges that can come with counterterrorism operations. “It is a huge psychological burden to fight an insurgency,” she wrote in a…

Iran and Russia are seeking to capitalize on the chaos in Sudan as they look for new locations to establish military bases. Both countries were longtime supporters of the Syrian regime led by Bashar al-Assad that rebels toppled in December. Iran and Russia each had military bases in Syria that they used to project regional influence. The countries began negotiating with Sudan last year, as rebels began turning the tide of the Syrian war. Iran and Russia both back the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), which has fought for control of the country against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) since…

With their fight against terrorists foundering and their economies teetering, the Sahel’s three junta-led nations are putting the squeeze on foreign mining companies to supply more cash for their cause. As the same time, they are offering Russia greater access to mineral wealth in exchange for military aid. In recent months, Burkina Faso nationalized two mines previously owned by Canadian companies with the expressed intent of running them itself. The takeover happened as Burkina Faso’s gold output continued to slide, having fallen from 67 metric tons in 2021 to 47.7 metric tons by late 2024. The junta has threatened to…

African militaries are working to expand and modernize their air fleets to project power across vast territories, stop threats from terror groups and respond to humanitarian crises. Several countries are acquiring used aircraft from other regions at discounted prices. According to AirPro News, this strategy accounts for about 75% of the continent’s fleet expansion. Egypt has the continent’s highest military aircraft capacity, followed by Algeria and Angola. Cairo commands the world’s eighth-largest military aircraft fleet with 1,093 combat aircraft, while Algeria’s 608 military aircraft ranks 17th globally and Angola ranks 34th worldwide with 298 aircraft, the Global Firepower Index reported.…

Few weapons have changed the nature of warfare in Africa quite like drones. And few drones have been as popular and as effective as those coming from Turkey. From small quadcopter-style ZD100 and ZD200 models to the fixed-wing, semi-autonomous Bayraktar TB2, Turkish drones are rapidly becoming the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) of choice for African nations. While Turkish companies offer a variety of drones for a wide range of purposes, African nations have focused much of their attention on the military drones developed by Baykar, run by the son-in-law of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. In late 2024, Kenya became…

A Cameroonian man was being treated in the infirmary of a Russian military camp in eastern Ukraine when he shared his story. The Kremlin, he said, is recklessly sending African conscripts to fight and die on the frontlines of Russia’s war on Ukraine. “Samuel” was among the thousands of Africans sent to the frontlines to fight, most of them against their will. Instead of fighting alongside Russian troops, however, Samuel said foreign conscripts are being used as cannon fodder. “Here, as soon as we can walk, they send us to the front,” he told Radio France Internationale (RFI), which gave…

ADF STAFF The deadliest terrorist attack in Beninese history has shaken the country and its military, leading to harsh criticism inwardly and outwardly. Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), an affiliate of al-Qaida, claimed responsibility for killing 30 Beninese Soldiers in the January 8 attack on an army position called the Point Triple forward operating base in the north. The base is near the Mekrou river, which marks the border with Burkina Faso and Niger. Beninese National Guard Chief of Staff Col. Faizou Gomina called the base “one of the strongest and most militarized,” as he urged military commanders to improve…

ADF STAFF Virginia Gamba recently raised alarms about the increase in state militaries and nonstate armed groups recruiting children across Africa, particularly in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mali, Mozambique, Somalia and Sudan. “The cries of these children echo across conflict zones, but far too often, the world remains silent,” the United Nations Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict said in a December 31, 2024, statement. “Their pain is a stain on our collective conscience. We must do better, because every moment we delay, another child becomes just another number in the long list of conflict related casualties…