insert_link Africa Violence at the Kenya-Ethiopia border: what’s driving insecurity in the region By Oscar Gakuo Mwangi, University of Rwanda Communal conflict is endemic in the vast arid region on both sides of the Kenya-Ethiopia border. Fresh alarm has been sparked in both countries following a kidnapping and armed attacks on police and civilians in Kenya’s Marsabit county, in the extreme north of the country. Oscar Mwangi Gakuo, who has studied the roots of conflict in the border region, sets […] todaySeptember 13, 2024 36
insert_link Africa Somalia cafe attack kills nine during Euro final The death toll from a car bombing at a cafe in Somalia's capital Mogadishu that was packed with football fans watching the the Euro 2024 final has risen to nine, security sources said today. Witnesses described scenes of panic and chaos after the powerful blast late Sunday, with people scrambling for safety and the main entrance to the cafe destroyed by the blaze. Mohamed Yusuf, an official […] todayJuly 15, 2024 10
insert_link Africa Somalia army vs al-Shabaab: as African Union troops leave, which is the stronger military force? By Paul D. Williams, George Washington University The African Union (AU) has gradually reduced its troop numbers in Somalia since late 2017, from a peak of over 22,000 to about 14,000 today. Another 4,000 AU peacekeepers are scheduled to withdraw by the end of September and the entire AU Transition Mission in Somalia is scheduled to leave by 31 December 2024. African Union peacekeepers were […] todayJune 20, 2024 35
insert_link Africa Between witchcraft and terrorism: how social fears in coastal Kenya impact religious expression By Erik Meinema, Utrecht University Kenya’s coastal region has, since about 2011, grappled with terrorist attacks carried out by the Somalia-based Islamic terrorist organisation Al-Shabaab. Muslims in coastal Kenya have long complained about their relative marginalisation versus Christians. Al-Shabaab has sought to capitalise on this sense of marginalisation to draw recruits and support from a small minority of Kenyan Muslims. Kenyan authorities have also associated […] todayJune 7, 2024 15
Africa Cuban speaker in Kenya over fate of abducted doctors Cuba's parliament speaker is visiting Nairobi in a bid to uncover the fate of two Cuban doctors abducted in Kenya by Somalia-based jihadists almost five years ago, its foreign ministry said. The mission by Esteban Lazo comes after Al-Shabaab claimed in a statement that the two doctors had been killed in a US air strike in Somalia last week. Lazo "has travelled to Kenya in order to engage in urgent […] todayFebruary 22, 2024 20