Sudan’s El Obeid Overwhelmed by Displaced Families despite RSF Siege
Tens of thousands of newly displaced people are pouring into the North Kordofan state capital of El Obeid, aid officials said on Friday, despite a tightening blockade and frequent drone strikes by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). International aid organizations warned of a looming humanitarian catastrophe in the city, which is surrounded by the RSF on three sides in a virtual siege. The military layout has fueled fears of a major assault and abuses similar to those documented in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state. The RSF drone campaign has systematically targeted infrastructure and the sole remaining supply route, a highway linking El Obeid to Kosti in neighbouring White Nile state. Burned-out commercial trucks line the roadside, disrupting supply chains and causing commodity prices to spike inside the city. Despite the security risks, El Obeid remains a primary sanctuary for civilians fleeing RSF-controlled territory in South Kordofan and West Kordofan states. An official from the regional Humanitarian Aid Commission told Sudan Tribune that more than 11,000 families, roughly 60,000 individuals, arrived in the city between March and June alone. Sudan Tribune
Insurgents Withdraw from Strategic North Mali Town after Days of Fighting
A Tuareg-led separatist group has begun withdrawing from Mali’s strategic northern town of Anefis after armed forces including members of Russia’s paramilitary Africa Corps pushed them out, a rebel spokesperson and the army said on Friday. The rebel group, the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA), and Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM), [last weekend] staged attacks on army positions across Mali, including Anefis. The strategic town links Gao, the north’s biggest city, to the town of Kidal which was seized by FLA fighters earlier this year. Mohamed Elmaouloud Ramadane, a spokesperson for the FLA, told Reuters the group’s fighters on Thursday had decided to withdraw after a week of clashes with military convoys coming from Gao. … Mali’s armed forces said in a statement on Friday they were continuing joint operations with Africa Corps across the country. Reuters
Students Abducted in May by Islamic Militants in Nigeria Are Rescued, Government Says
Students abducted in May by Islamic militants in Nigeria’s southwestern Oyo state have been rescued, the government said Friday. Government spokesman Bayo Onanuga did not specify the total number of students rescued, but authorities said at the time of the abductions on May 15 that more than 40 people had been abducted. One of the teachers abducted alongside the students was killed shortly afterward. Eight militants were arrested as part of the operation, while an unspecified number of the militants were killed, Onanuga said. The abductions in a southern state had represented an escalation of the country’s security crisis because most such abductions previously had taken place in the north. AP
Can Nigeria’s Drone Industry Deliver Africa’s Defence Sovereignty
For decades, African militaries have turned abroad for critical defence technologies, leaving the continent largely positioned as a buyer rather than a producer. An Abuja-based start-up is attempting to change that equation. Terra Industries, founded in 2024 by Nathan Nwachuku and Maxwell Maduka, both in their early twenties, designs and manufactures drones, autonomous surveillance towers and unmanned ground vehicles from facilities in Abuja and Accra. Unlike companies that primarily assemble imported components, Terra says it develops its own software, airframes, propellers and lithium-ion battery packs, with more than 70 percent of its inputs sourced locally. … The shift from importing security technology to producing it locally has become an increasingly important debate across Africa. Governments facing armed groups, porous borders, maritime insecurity and attacks on critical infrastructure are searching for faster and more adaptable solutions. … The interest in companies like Terra comes as drones become increasingly central to conflicts across Africa. In the Sahel, inexpensive commercial drones have moved from surveillance tools to weapons used on the battlefield, creating new challenges for militaries that often lack effective counter-drone capabilities. Al Jazeera
How Terrorist Groups Are Using A.I. to Gain an Edge in Battle
Until recently, the Islamic State, Al Qaeda and other extremists primarily used A.I. in the information-operations realm — propaganda production, translation, recruitment and security tradecraft. But that has evolved as jihadists have turned to A.I. for tactical on-the-ground advantages, according to current and former U.S. military and counterterrorism officials and independent researchers. The evolution highlights a broader challenge for the A.I. industry. Chatbots have built-in limitations intended to prevent users from soliciting information that could cause harm to others or themselves. But researchers have repeatedly found that people can circumvent safety protocols, often by slowly but persistently coaxing models into divulging information they are trained to restrict. [Antonia Juelich, a terrorism and technology researcher at Cambridge University] conducted nearly 60 interviews with 27 former members of Boko Haram in Nigeria over the past year. Her field research found that terrorists were using chatbots to design explosives, fix or upgrade other weapons, and brainstorm ideas on how to attack their enemies. The New York Times
Kenya’s Goons: A World Of Political Violence and Desperation
Kenyan politicians are hiring armed thugs for as little as $4 per day, as poverty and ruthless political competition threaten to unleash uncontrollable violence ahead of elections next year. So-called “goons” are increasingly being hired, dozens or even hundreds at a time, to break up the rallies of political opponents and protesters, and attack civil rights groups — with police often turning a blind eye. A recent study by Nairobi-based research firm Odipo Dev revealed a goons rate card, ranging from 500 shillings ($4) to work for a local councillor to as much as 1,000 shillings for members of parliament. … Politicians and police insist they want to stamp out “goonism”, but analysts say it is deeply entrenched on all sides. During anti-government protests last year, AFP saw first-hand how hundreds of goons appeared to work directly alongside police to attack demonstrators, later looting and vandalising businesses in central Nairobi. … Goonism is driven by desperation in an economy where some 800,000 enter the labour market each year for just 100,000 jobs in the formal sector, according to the World Bank. … Goons are hired offline through neighbourhood contacts to avoid leaving any electronic fingerprints. Potential recruits are told to gather in a location, dressed in black, with a face-covering. AFP
Morocco Arrests Dissident Journalist Ali Lmrabet
Moroccan police arrested dissident commentator Ali Lmrabet for questioning upon his arrival at Tangier airport on Sunday, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said on Monday. Lmrabet is under investigation for “alleged dissemination of false information harming constitutional institutions”, according to the organisation that provides assistance to journalists at risk. … Lmrabet, who also holds French nationality and lives in Spain, has used social media as a political commentator and has been an outspoken critic of Morocco’s political system. An informed source said Lmrabet is facing a preliminary investigation over complaints filed by individuals and institutions in Morocco alleging slander and defamation. In 2003, Lmrabet was jailed after being convicted on charges that included offending the king. In 2005, a Moroccan court banned him from practicing journalism in Morocco for 10 years. Reuters
Sixteen Starve to Death in Uganda as Drought Kills Crops
The Ugandan government says at least 16 people have died from hunger in recent weeks in the north-eastern region of Karamoja due to a prolonged drought. Farmers say they’ve lost crops because the area received little or no rain since April – the beginning of the planting season. Experts warn the region’s recurring shortages are caused by climate change, poor rainfall, deforestation, overgrazing and crop pests. Together, they leave communities increasingly vulnerable to hunger. The government says it has started distributing emergency food aid. … Uganda’s semi-arid north-east has been struck by catastrophic food shortages before. In 2022, more than 2,200 people died of starvation and related illnesses in north-east Uganda, a report by an official human rights body said. BBC
First Patients Enrolled in Record-breaking Ebola Treatment Trial in DRC
There is no approved drug to help the medical teams scrabbling to save lives in the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo – but there are hopes that could change within months as the first patients are enrolled in a treatment trial. It is a record pace to set up and start this kind of research, scientists said, with patients enrolled just six weeks after the outbreak being declared a public health emergency of international concern by the World Health Organization (WHO) on 17 May. The Partners treatment trial has opened with two drugs on its books – remdesivir, and MBP134. Patients will be randomly allocated to receive either drug, a combination of the two, or simply standard, supportive care. Remdesivir is an antiviral made by pharma company Gilead Sciences, while MBP134 is a monoclonal antibody developed by Mapp Biopharmaceutical, containing two specially engineered immune proteins that recognise and neutralise the virus. Both are given intravenously – MBP134 as a one-off infusion, and remdesivir as 10 days of intravenous therapy. “These two drugs actually have been proven to work against the Bundibugyo virus in animal models,” said Prof Laurens Liesenborghs of the Institute of Tropical Medicine, Antwerp, who is working on the trial in Ituri. The Guardian
Oxford Begins First Human Trial of Bundibugyo Ebola Vaccine
The University of Oxford has launched the first human trial of a vaccine against Bundibugyo ebolavirus, seeking to accelerate efforts to combat an outbreak spreading in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda. The early-stage trial, known as BD-Ebov, will evaluate the safety and immune response of the ChAdOx1 BDBV vaccine in 50 healthy adults aged 18 to 55 in Oxford, the university said on Monday. Recruitment has begun, with vaccinations expected to start in the coming weeks pending regulatory approval. The vaccine was developed by scientists at Oxford’s Vaccine Group and Pandemic Sciences Institute using the same viral vector platform as the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 shot. Serum Institute of India, which is partnering on the programme, said it manufactured and stockpiled about 620,000 doses of the vaccine candidate within two weeks and supplied 4,000 investigational doses for the early-stage study. … Preparations are also under way for additional clinical studies in Uganda, subject to regulatory approval, through partnerships including the Medical Research Council/Uganda Virus Research Institute and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine Uganda Research Unit. If the early-stage trial is successful, CEPI said it would work with Oxford and Serum Institute to support late-stage studies needed to seek emergency-use authorisation or full regulatory approval. Reuters
Namibia Secures China Deals on Infrastructure, Mining and Energy with State Visit
China on Friday said it would step up cooperation with Namibia in the Southern African state’s energy, farming, infrastructure, and minerals sectors during talks in Beijing between Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Namibian President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah. Nandi-Ndaitwah has been on a seven-day visit to China since Sunday, seeking investment from the world’s top lender and second-largest economy to help implement election pledges to create jobs and diversify the Namibian economy. … China and Namibia signed eight documents, including agreements on cooperation in green minerals and a framework agreement on economic partnership. … The statement emphasised the role of promoting local processing — a theme raised recently by a number of African commodity producers — technological transfer and local skills development. … China is a key export market for Namibia, taking around a quarter of the country’s total shipments, according to a recent International Monetary Fund report. Of the $1.3 billion worth of Namibian goods China bought last year, uranium accounted for 85%. Reuters