North Africa
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“Uncontacted” Amazon tribesmen

Protesters marched in Libya's capital Tripoli demanding that renegade general Khalifa Haftar lift his siege of the eastern city of Derna. Demonstrators gathered outside the headquarters of the UN mission to demand an international response. Protesters demanded UN pressure on Haftar to open a corridor at Derna to allow evacuation of the wounded and ill. Derna has been under siege for nearly two years, but the situation has worsened since Haftar launched a new offensive this month against the Islamist factions that control the city. (Map: IRIN)

North Africa

Jihadis target Mauritania?

A Feb. 1 attack on the Israeli Embassy in Mauritania and two other high-profile attacks since December have thrown into question the African republic’s democratic opening. In the latest attack, the façade of the Israeli Embassy in Nouakchott, that capital,… Read moreJihadis target Mauritania?

North Africa

Uranium wars in Niger

In a statement on its website, the NigĂ©rien Justice Movement (MNJ) claimed a Jan. 22 attack on Tanout in the Zinder district of Niger, in which at least three soldiers were killed, six wounded and nine others, including the town’s… Read moreUranium wars in Niger

North Africa
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IraqStrike2

The UN Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons is calling on the government of Libya to protect hundreds of former residents of the town of Tawergha who are currently stranded in the desert. According to the UN, approximately 40,000 Tawarghans were forcefully evacuated in 2011 due to their perceived support for the country's former dictator Moammar Qaddafi, and their return has since been blocked by armed militia groups acting with the consent of the Libyan government. Although the Tawarghans are Libyan nationals, they appear to be suspected of supporting Qaddafi simply because many are of Black African ethnicity. As his army collapsed in 2011, Qaddafi brought in many Black African mercenaries in a last-ditch bid to hold onto power. (Photo: Mustafa Fetouri via The National, UAE)