1) EGYPT
» 14/10/2014: Student demonstrations in Egypt
Student demonstrations against the government have taken place at a number of Egyptian universities since the removal of President Mohamed Morsi. The administrations of these universities tried, without success, to contain the protests in cooperation with the Egyptian security services. This led them to sign a contract with the private security company Falcon to secure some 15 state universities, in addition to the main campus of Al-Azhar University in Nasr City, just as the new academic year was getting under way. Falcon is run by retired former police officers and soldiers, headed by Sharif Khalid, a former deputy director of General Intelligence and former head of security at the state Radio and Television Union. Falcon’s takeover of security on campuses angered students, who took to the streets a few days ago at Cairo, Ain Shams and Al-Azhar universities, as well as at the universities of Beni Suef, Mansoura, Damietta, Menoufia and Zagazig. Students carried pictures of some of their detained fellow students and chanted various slogans, including “We are students, not terrorists” and “Down with military rule”. The protests led to the withdrawal of Falcon staff and the university administrations taking back responsibility for security at three universities. The Egyptian authorities described the demonstrations as “sabotage protests”, and some students were expelled from their universities for taking part. Throughout the previous academic year, the Egyptian security forces accused Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood of exploiting students in protests allegedly aimed at undermining the country’s stability. Student rights organisations, for their part, documented what they described as “violations” against students.
Link(s) for further information:
Egypt: Security forces use excessive force to crush student protests (external website, opens in a new tab) · Amnesty International · archived copy
Egyptian students begin new revolutionary year (external website, opens in a new tab) · Middle East Monitor
2) YEMEN
» 20.10.2014: The Houthis and al-Qaeda
On Monday 13 October, Khaled Bahah was appointed prime minister with the task of forming a government of national consensus. The General People’s Congress party affirmed its wish to keep the ministries allotted to it under the Gulf Initiative agreement, including the Ministry of Defence, while the Islah party threatened not to take part in the new government if the current defence minister, General Mohammed Nasser Ahmed, remained in post. Meanwhile, the Houthis continue to expand. Houthi forces have taken control of several new governorates – among them Hodeidah, with its strategic position on the Red Sea, Hajjah, Ibb and Dhamar – without meeting much resistance, leading some to fear a staged surrender of these governorates by the state to the Houthi forces. The Houthis present themselves as a force for political change bringing security through the popular committees they set up with their supporters in every governorate they control. But many Yemenis doubt their intentions, especially after the Houthis committed numerous violations against their opponents, through killings or the blowing up of their homes. Many Yemeni tribes have therefore begun to confront Houthi fighters in the town of Rada‘a in al-Bayda governorate, in the town of Yarim in Ibb governorate and in Ibb itself, the governorate capital. The whole area has turned into a real battlefield, with dozens killed and wounded on both sides. Observation of the situation indicates that Yemen’s range of political options has narrowed in the light of the fait accompli imposed by the armed Houthi group, which has prompted other parties to respond by force. Tribes in some parts of Yemen have thus announced their alliance with al-Qaeda: in Rada‘a, tribes are fighting alongside al-Qaeda against the Houthis, and tribes in Marib have announced their readiness to open training camps for al-Qaeda.
Link(s) for further information:
Yemen politics unrest (external website, opens in a new tab) · Al-Monitor
At least 20 Houthis killed in al-Qaeda Yemen attacks (external website, opens in a new tab) · Al Akhbar English · archived copy
Us yemen security (external website, opens in a new tab) · Reuters
3) SAHEL
Nigeria:
» 18.10.2014: Uncertainty over the ceasefire agreement with Boko Haram
Six months after the abduction of 219 schoolgirls in Chibok, north-eastern Nigeria, on 14 April 2014 by the armed Islamist group known as “Boko Haram”, the Nigerian government announced on Friday that it had reached a ceasefire agreement with the group providing for the release of the abducted schoolgirls. Some, however, have expressed doubts about such an agreement, coming just as Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan is expected to announce his candidacy for re-election next February, with security issues at the heart of the political debate.
Islamisme terrorisme boko haram nigeria nigeria nigeria le gouvernement annonce un accord avec boko haram… (external website, opens in a new tab) · Jeune Afrique
Islamisme terrorisme boko haram terrorisme nigeria cessez le feu avec boko haram incertitude sur le… (external website, opens in a new tab) · Jeune Afrique
Chad:
» 18.10.2014: Visit of the President of the Libyan Parliament to Chad
Counsellor Aguila Saleh Issa, President of the Libyan Parliament, Head of State and Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, made his very first trip abroad to Chad. While clashes between supporters of the elected authorities and the militias rage in western Libya, Aguila Saleh Issa’s visit aimed to strengthen diplomatic relations and cooperation in various fields, notably security. The Libyan leader discussed the security challenges in the Sahel with President Idriss Déby. On the Chadian side, the visit follows a meeting less than a month ago with the former president of the Libyan NTC. Chad has recognised the new government but calls for political dialogue.
Niger:
» 16.10.2014: Three tonnes of weapons in the convoy destroyed by the French army
The armed forces general staff in Paris gave some details of the quantities of weapons found in the six-vehicle convoy destroyed on 10 October in the north of the country: reportedly three tonnes of sophisticated weapons from Libya, much of which was destroyed during the raid. Some of these weapons, including SA-7 surface-to-air missiles, can be used against helicopters, but also against civilian aircraft during landing or take-off. “It is one of the largest weapons seizures in the Sahel-Saharan strip since French forces became engaged in the region in January 2013,” said Colonel Gilles Jaron. Some fifteen jihadists were reportedly “neutralised”, that is, killed or taken prisoner.
Mali:
» 18.10.2014: Peace talks resume in Algiers
Although they were due to be postponed to 22 October, peace talks between the Malian government and the armed groups resumed on Saturday in Algiers. In September, each party had presented a plan for ending the crisis: Bamako submitted to the mediators a document entitled “elements of the government’s proposal”, while the armed groups presented a plan based on federalism, with a state in the north to be called Azawad.
These discussions are taking place in a particularly tense context, owing on the one hand to recent clashes between the MNLA and the Tuareg self-defence movement GATIA, which wants to establish itself as an interlocutor, and on the other to the arrest by the French army in Kidal of three people responsible for an attack on a camp of the United Nations mission in Mali (MINUSMA). The Malian government is asking the UN to deploy a “rapid intervention force” to counter the growing strength of the armed groups in the north, where it is struggling to restore its authority.
Diplomatie defense securite nord mali crise malienne mali reouverture des negociations de paix a alger (external website, opens in a new tab) · Jeune Afrique
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