The European Union’s dicey migration deal with Turkey is causing untold misery among migrants and refugees trapped on Greek islands, according to a Human Rights Watch (HRW) report released Wednesday. The HRW organization conducted research in May and June on the island of Lesbos that “documented the deteriorating mental health…
Media outlets in Mauritania and Mali say that JNIM, a militant group aligned with al Qaeda in West Africa, has claimed responsibility for Sunday’s attack on a resort favored by Westerners near Bamako. A statement released to the Mauritanian media outlet ANI by Al Zallaqa, the media arm of the recently organized JNIM…
In the aftermath of President Donald Trump’s announcement Thursday that the United States was pulling out of the Paris climate accord, there was no shortage of responses from the international community or, for that matter, from American business leaders and local and state governments. The rest of the world expressed…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
The European Commission has updated its EU Air Safety List, which now includes 181 airlines in countries outside the EU that are either banned or restricted from flying to member nations because of safety or regulation issues. All air carriers certified in Benin and Mozambique were removed from the EU Air…
Newly elected President Emmanuel Macron of France promised during his campaign that once in office, his first trip abroad would be to see French troops stationed in the Sahel in Operation Barkhane. Now he’s making good on that promise with a visit, expected to be in Mali, on Thursday or…
Libyan authorities picked up nearly 500 migrants, more than half of them from Morocco, in what they say were their territorial waters off the coast of Sabratha on Wednesday – but not without a challenge from the German NGO Sea Watch, whose own vessel tried to intervene so the migrants…
Environmental champion Youba Sokona’s resignation is effective April 30, so as of Sunday the Malian scholar will no longer serve in his leadership role at the Africa Renewable Energy Initiative (AREI). At first glance, it may seem hardly newsworthy and entirely forgivable to not know who Sokona and the AREI…
Human rights organization Amnesty International has called on the United Nations to add human rights monitoring to the mandate of the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO). “The UN mission in Western Sahara is the world’s only modern peacekeeping operation without a human rights component,” said Heba…
Concerned about the apparent failure of the CENCO-mediated political agreement in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the United States has urged both Congolese government officials and the Rassemblement opposition coalition to redouble their efforts to overcome their disagreements. “The United States is disappointed by lack of progress in implementation of…
The leaders of European Union (EU) member states will return to Malta on Friday to discuss strategies to control migration across the Mediterranean Sea. “Our main goal for the Malta summit is to stem the flow of irregular migration from Libya to Europe. This is the only way to stop…
German Chancellor Angela Merkel begins a trip to Africa Sunday, visiting the nations of Mali and Niger to discuss their security and counterterrorism strategies before heading to Ethiopia. She’ll arrive in Addis Ababa amid the nation’s escalating unrest and the international attention to its alleged human rights violations, issues that…
International response was muted Monday following a weekend decision by the Constitutional Court in Gabon to uphold the contested August re-election results that return President Ali Bongo to office. United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for restraint and respect for human rights in a statement Sunday, while welcoming Bongo’s appeal…
“The spirit of Bratislava is the spirit of cooperation,” said German Chancellor Angela Merkel, describing Friday’s meeting of 27 European Union member states in Slovakia in lofty terms even as she warned of the critical juncture at which Europe finds itself. On the unresolved issue of migrants, some EU leaders…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
EU rules on Morocco, Western Sahara trade amid escalating tensions A European Union judge has ruled that key trade agreements between the EU and Morocco do not apply to the disputed Western Sahara territory, adding that the Polisario Front’s authority – while recognized by the international community in negotiation of…