Three weeks of battles in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region have led to what appears to be a decisive victory for the federal government. On 28 November 2020, an official statement by the armed forces announced that they claimed complete control over the region’s capital city, Mekelle (Abiy Ahmed Ali, Twitter, 28 November 2020). Clashes began…
Last week in Africa, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front suffered numerous territorial losses in Ethiopia; the detention of presidential candidate Bobi Wine prompted violent confrontations in Uganda; and Nigerian state forces launched operations against Ansaru militants, amid ongoing violence in the country’s northwest. Ethiopian federal forces made significant gains against Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF)…
Last week in Africa, the worsening conflict in Ethiopia spilled into neighboring Eritrea; a longstanding ceasefire was breached in the disputed Western Sahara; and French forces killed a senior Al Qaeda-affiliated militant in Mali. The conflict between the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and Ethiopian federal forces continued to worsen in Ethiopia, spilling into neighboring…
Last week in Africa, fighting between Ethiopian federal forces and Tigrayan forces prompted fears of a civil war in Ethiopia; Al Shabaab launched a series of assassination attempts targeting government figures in Somalia; and opposition parties launched an alternate administration in response to the re-election of President Alassane Ouattara in the Ivory Coast. In Ethiopia,…
Last week in Africa, anti-French demonstrations were reported in several countries; electoral violence proliferated in the Ivory Coast and the Zanzibar autonomous region of Tanzania; and Allied Democratic Forces militants launched deadly attacks on civilian populations in North Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Anti-French demonstrations were held in the Muslim majority countries…
Last week in Africa, fatalities proliferated during anti-police brutality demonstrations in Nigeria; electoral violence worsened in Guinea and the Ivory Coast; and militants staged a massive prison break in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In Nigeria, continued interventions by unidentified armed groups, counter-demonstrators and state forces against #EndSARS demonstrators led to a proliferation of fatal…
Last week in Africa, clashes were reported between rival Islamist groups across the Sahel; demonstrators commemorated the October 1988 pro-democracy demonstrations in Algeria; and violent demonstrations erupted in eastern Sudan over the recently signed Juba peace agreement. Rival Islamist groups engaged in multiple clashed across the Sahelian countries of Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso. More…
Last week in Africa, Kenyan and Somali forces clashed following a Kenyan military incursion into Somalia; secessionist violence was reported in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cameroon, and Ghana; and anti-government demonstrations were reported in Egypt and Cameroon. The killing of three civilians by Kenyan state forces in Somalia’s Gedo region prompted large anti-Kenya demonstrations…
During the last five weeks in Africa, the Malian government was overthrown in a military coup; election-related violence was reported in the Ivory Coast, Uganda, and the Central African Republic; and a ceasefire was declared in Libya. In Mali, national guards conducted a military coup on 18 August, and arrested President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, Prime…
In our special report on 10 conflicts to worry about at the start of 2020, ACLED identified a range of flashpoints and emerging crises where violent political disorder was likely to evolve and worsen over the course of the year: the Sahel, Mexico, Yemen, India, Somalia, Iran, Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Lebanon, and the United States. Our…