West Africa’s coastal states are bracing for a jihadist storm
With French troops leaving Mali, its neighbours are at risk
A DRONE WHIRS overhead as Ivorian special forces creep out of the undergrowth towards a mock village. French trainers watch closely. Nearby, Ghanaian commandos roar down a dusty road before an explosion sends them retreating under the gaze of British soldiers. Operation Flintlock, an annual counter-terrorism training exercise, appears to be going just as it should: regional forces learning from grizzled Western commandos.
This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline “Lines in the sand”
Middle East & Africa February 26th 2022
- The enemies of South African democracy have the judiciary in their sights
- West Africa’s coastal states are bracing for a jihadist storm
- Names in southern Africa are both creative and revealing
- The UAE tries to crack down on dirty money
- Are Cairo’s menacing minibuses on their way out?
- The market for falcons is soaring as wild populations decline
From the February 26th 2022 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionMore from Middle East & Africa
America concludes genocide has been committed in Sudan—again
The move highlights the magnitude of Sudan’s civil war but does little to end it
Lebanon tries yet again to elect a new president
But it will not be easy to convince its corrupt politicians to reform
The West is making a muddle of its Syria sanctions
Outsiders should be much clearer about how and when they will be lifted
Alawites formed Syria’s elite. Now they are terrified
Fear of reprisal stalks the heartlands of the Assad regime
From inside an obliterated Gaza, gunfire not a ceasefire
In north Gaza the IDF is now facing “a bitter guerrilla war”
Mozambique’s opposition leader flies home into chaos
Will Venâncio Mondlane’s arrival on January 9th deepen or ease political crisis?