Chad Risks Greater Instability from Engagement in Sudan’s Conflict
The spillover from the war in Sudan has become an increasingly serious security threat for neighboring Chad. In December 2025, a drone strike near Tiné killed two Chadian soldiers. In January 2026, seven more were killed in clashes with the Sudanese paramilitary group, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), along the eastern border. In February 2026, following additional armed incursions, N’Djamena announced the closure of its border with Sudan and deployed thousands of troops along the nearly 1,400-kilometer frontier. Despite these measures, violations of Chadian territory have continued in various forms. These episodes mark a critical shift: Sudan’s conflict is no longer simply a neighboring crisis with indirect effects—it has become a direct security threat for Chad. … Open-source reporting and independent analysis suggest that the government of President Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno has facilitated support to the RSF since 2023. This engagement has deepened internal fractures within Chad, particularly within the Zaghawa community and other groups in eastern Chad with close ties to Darfur in western Sudan. N’Djamena’s alignment with external partners such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE)—and to a lesser extent, Russia—has been widely interpreted as a strategic choice to bolster Chad from the fallout of the Sudan conflict. However, this alignment has heightened regional volatility and increased Chad’s exposure to external rivalries. … It is within this context that Chad’s border with Sudan has become an increasingly active corridor for arms trafficking and armed group movements—including RSF elements—within a broader regional arc linking Libya, the Central African Republic (CAR), and South Sudan. This trend is especially sensitive given Chad’s deep cross-border social ties and long history of rebellions and proxy conflicts linked to Sudan. Chad now hosts roughly 1.3 million Sudanese refugees and returnees, the majority from Darfur. This massive influx is placing significant strain on Chad’s eastern provinces—among the country’s poorest—which are already facing acute food insecurity and limited government services. These dynamics make Sudan’s conflict uniquely complex for Chad. The war is acting as a multiplier of existing vulnerabilities, testing N’Djamena’s capacity to absorb and contain regional security shocks. Africa Center for Strategic Studies
Sudan Army Destroys RSF Supply Sites on Libya, Chad Borders
Sudanese military sources told Sudan Tribune that the army destroyed two major supply positions for the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) located on the borders with Chad and Libya. The military considers the supply triangle flowing from Libya and Chad into the urban centres of Darfur a persistent threat to national security. Sources said the army conducted approximately 21 preemptive strikes against RSF convoys entering the country through the northwestern and western borders. Military officials declined to provide the specific geographical coordinates of the destroyed sites. However, they confirmed that the shipments contained technical equipment, including drones and jamming devices. The Sudanese government has repeatedly accused Chad of providing logistical support to the RSF. Similar allegations have been directed at General Khalifa Haftar’s forces in Libya regarding the transport of military supplies across the border. Military sources said Sudan’s air defence and air force commands are maintaining close surveillance of the western border regions to intercept further shipments. Military experts told Sudan Tribune that RSF logistics rely on strategic routes that exploit security vacuums along the border. These paths connect distribution centres in Libya to reception points within Sudan. Sudan Tribune
UN Peacekeepers Defy South Sudan Military’s Order to Leave Opposition-Held Town
The United Nations Mission in South Sudan said Monday that it would not comply with a government order to shut down its base in Akobo, an opposition stronghold near the Ethiopian border where tens of thousands of refugees have fled. On Friday, the South Sudanese army ordered U.N. peacekeepers as well as NGOs and civilians to vacate the town ahead of a planned assault. But the mission refused to leave and said it would provide “a protective presence for civilians” in the town, adding that the safety and security of its personnel “must be fully respected at all times.” The U.N. Mission said it was engaging “intensively with national, state and local stakeholders” regarding this order. “Any military operations in and around Akobo gravely endanger the safety and security of civilians,” said mission chief Anita Kiki Gbeho. … Fearing the looming government assault on Akobo, humanitarian workers were evacuated over the weekend, and a mass exodus of the population has also begun. AP
South Sudan: Church Leaders Warn of Return to War, Call for Dialogue
The South Sudan Council of Churches (SSCC) on Monday called on the country’s political leaders to halt the ongoing military operations and embrace dialogue, warning that escalating violence risks plunging the country back into full-scale civil war. Speaking at a press conference in Juba, Stephen Ameyu Martin Mulla, the Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Juba and a leading figure in the SSCC, said the country is at a “critical crossroads” as violence intensifies in several parts of the country. “We stand together today… at a time when our nation stands at a critical crossroads,” he said, adding that church leaders had gathered in solidarity to call for peace during the Christian Lenten season. The prelate said 2025 had been one of the most difficult years for South Sudan, blaming repeated failures by political leaders to fully implement the 2018 peace agreement. … According to the church leaders, continued military operations and rising tensions threaten the collapse of the Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan, signed in 2018 to end years of civil war. Radio Tamazuj
Madagascar Military Leader Dissolves Government in Surprise Move
Madagascar’s military ruler Col Michael Randrianirina has dissolved the government unexpectedly, dismissing the prime minister and the entire cabinet, according to a statement from his spokesperson. “The government has ceased its functions” it said, adding that Randrianirina will appoint a new prime minister “in line with the provisions stipulated by the constitution”. No reason was given for the move. Randrianirina seized power last October from Andry Rajoelina, following weeks of youth-led protests on the Indian Ocean island. Rajoelina had been elected president for a third term in a disputed poll in 2023. … Last December, the regional bloc, the Southern African Development Community (Sadc), directed Madagascar’s military authorities to submit a roadmap for restoring democracy including plans for fresh elections by the end of February. But in a surprise on Monday, Randrianirina sacked his entire government and assigned permanent secretaries to run ministries’ day-to-day operations until a new cabinet is formed. Randrianirina has not explained the motivation for the mass sackings, but leaders of the Gen Z movement, whose grassroots mobilisation helped bring the military leader to power, have called for more inclusiveness in the transition process and greater representation in decision-making structures. BBC
Somalia: Jubaland President Meets with U.S. Military Officials to Bolster War on Al-Shabaab
Jubaland President Ahmed Mohamed Islam received Maj. Gen. Claude K. Tudor Jr., commander of Special Operations Command Africa (AFRICOM), and his delegation on Monday in Kismayo to discuss deepening cooperation in the war against Al-Shabaab. The high-level meeting focused on strengthening strategic partnerships, accelerating joint counterterrorism efforts against al-Shabaab militants, and providing continued support for operations to stabilize Jubaland. During the discussions, Maj. Gen. Tudor commended recent joint military operations conducted by Jubaland State forces and the Somali Danab Advanced Infantry Brigade. He noted that the collaboration has resulted in significant tactical victories and has effectively weakened militant influence in key sectors. President Islam, commonly known as Ahmed Madobe, emphasized the importance of sustained international support to maintain the momentum of current offensives. The president was joined in the meeting by Jubaland’s Minister of Internal Security, Yusuf Hussein Osman. The visit comes as Somali security forces, backed by international partners, continue to ramp up pressure on insurgent strongholds across southern and central Somalia to ensure long-term regional stability. Garowe Online
Tanzania Pushes Out Burundian Refugees, UN Concerned
Refugees from Burundi are being forcibly evicted from camps as Tanzania destroys their homes and churches, pushing them to return, often after years in exile. Burundi’s Interior Minister Leonidas Ndaruzaniye said this week that more than 100,000 of its citizens would be repatriated by June under a deal with Tanzania, according to local media. There were an estimated 142,000 Burundians in two camps as of late 2025, according to the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), having fled years of civil war, political repression and entrenched poverty in their small country in the Great Lakes region of Africa. Refugees have told AFP they are being forced out by violence, with Tanzanian security forces overseeing the destruction of their homes in the camps at Nduta and Nyarugusu. … Entire areas, including churches, have been destroyed, with schools and hospitals closed, according to several refugees, who also said they were prevented from leaving their homes to farm. … Burundi and Tanzania initially signed an agreement in December to facilitate the return of up to 3,000 people per week, UNHCR said, and some 28,000 have gone back so far this year. Africanews with AFP
Fears of Fresh War Drive Tigrayans to Flee North Ethiopia
Federal and Tigrayan forces are once again massing at their shared border in northern Ethiopia. The peace agreement that ended the last civil war in 2022 was never properly implemented and relations have remained highly volatile, not helped by Ethiopia’s worsening ties with Eritrea, which borders Tigray. There are no exact numbers, but hundreds are fleeing Tigray — a region that was home to around six million people before the war — every day by bus or plane. … Shortages of basic products are worsening. Hawkers sell bottles of smuggled petrol at intersections and their prices are rising fast — from 300 to 430 birr (around $1.90 to $2.80) in just a few days, an AFP journalist said. Federal authorities have cut subsidies to the region for months. Many civil servants are no longer being paid and banks are running out of cash. … Chercher, a town of around 50,000 roughly 150 kilometres south of Mekelle, is near the borders with the Afar and Amhara regions, where federal troops are reportedly massing. In January there was a brief outbreak of fighting in the area, sparking fears that a full conflict was restarting. Addis Standard
African Development Bank Eyes Green Fund Expansion
The African Development Bank wants to double the amount of money its flagship renewables fund — the continent’s biggest — mobilizes within two years. The Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa was launched in 2011 in order to catalyze private investment in sustainable energy across the continent and provide low-cost loans and technical assistance to expand energy access. Now, it wants to grow the amount it finances to $2.5 billion in a couple of years and by 2030, “we expect our portfolio to yield over $10 billion in commercial capital mobilized,” the head of the fund told The Associated Press. In 2024, it backed 14 clean energy projects in Burkina Faso, Chad, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Nigeria, delivering 1.5 million new electricity connections. Semafor
Africa Targets US$50bn in Deals as Nigeria Secures IATF 2027
AFRICAN trade leaders are targeting more than US$50 billion in business deals at the 2027 Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF) after Nigeria formally signed the host country agreement for the continental event on Monday. The agreement confirms that Nigeria will host the fifth edition of the fair, IATF2027, in Lagos, bringing together governments, businesses, investors and development institutions from across Africa and beyond. Speaking during the signing ceremony, George Elombi, president and chairman of the board of directors of African Export‑Import Bank (Afreximbank), said the fair had become an important platform for driving trade and investment across the continent. … The IATF is one of the flagship initiatives supporting the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), a continent-wide market designed to boost trade among African countries. … With global supply chains undergoing significant shifts, [Wamkele Mene, secretary-general of the AfCFTA Secretariat] said Africa had a unique opportunity to strengthen its regional production networks and build more resilient value chains. The Independent