In January, Muhammed Shaeban, ‘al-Mirdas,’ resigned as the Libyan deputy ambassador and consul general in Tunis. Allegedly, he was about to be fired and decided to step down on his own. Mirdas was not only a diplomat. Primarily, he was one of the leaders of... MORE

Philippines Lifts Martial Law Amid Fragile Gains Brian M. Perkins On January 1, the government lifted martial law on the embattled Philippines island of Mindanao, which has long been plagued by Islamic State (IS)-linked violence and has grappled with a communist rebellion by the New... MORE

The Russia-Africa Summit and Economic Forum, held in Sochi on October 23–24, was presented as an event of great geopolitical and geo-economic importance (see EDM, October 28), explicitly showcasing the competitive advantages Moscow is purportedly ready to employ in its struggle for influence on the... MORE

Al-Qaeda Likely to Exploit Baghdadi’s Death Brian M. Perkins The death of Islamic State (IS) leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is being hailed as a victory by al-Qaeda, which stands to benefit significantly from his death. While Baghdadi’s death is unlikely to see the collapse of... MORE

Introduction From June 27 to July 3, Tunisia saw a series of chaotic events, as the country’s capital was struck by two nearly simultaneous suicide bombings, followed by a massive government manhunt for those behind the attacks. Tunisian Prime Minister Youssef Chahed defined these five... MORE

Introduction In April, paramilitary forces loyal to the Libyan National Army (LNA)—the armed wing of the Tobruk administration—began its campaign to take the capital Tripoli from the UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) and its loose coalition of militia units (Africa Times, April 11). Fighting... MORE

Introduction After the establishment of Jamaat Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimeen (The Group for Support of Islam and Muslims—JNIM) in March 2017, the geographic shift characterizing al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb’s (AQIM) strategic trajectory became even more visible. The group became primarily focused on the Sahelian... MORE

Background Tunisia is currently going through a very delicate phase in its development. Political tensions are intensifying with the presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for the end of 2019. The two parties that formed the coalition government, Ennahda and Nida Tounes, are campaigning in open... MORE

At the end of January 2019, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov traveled to the Maghreb, visiting Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia. According to Lavrov’s spokesperson, the trip was conceived to discuss the state of “bilateral relations […] and the regional and international situation” in addition to... MORE

Syria: al-Qaeda Looks to Revive Its Fortunes An attack on Syrian government forces in the country’s Hama governorate appears to have been intended to raise the profile of a rejuvenated al-Qaeda-linked alliance in the midst of Syria’s conflict. Syrian forces have been ramping up their... MORE