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☆ A slew of new conflicts could erupt in 2024, analysts say — while the world is watching Gaza and Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-28 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

- | Afp | Getty ImagesWith the eyes of the world on the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Gaza, an unprecedented number of potentially "catastrophic" conflicts are going under the radar, analysts have warned. The U.N. estimated in October that more than 114 million people were displaced by war and conflict worldwide. There is good reason for that — it is currently the most dangerous place in the world to be a civilian." The political turbulence comes amid ongoing armed conflict in eastern DRC and widespread poverty, and precedes further regional elections early next year. If you look at Myanmar, of course you've got this huge population in Bangladesh of displaced Rohingyas, and also displaced within Myanmar itself," she said.

Persons: Abdel Fattah al, Burhan, David Miliband, Miliband, Isabelle Arradon, Rapid Support Forces —, Gen, Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, Khalifa Haftar —, Arradon, Félix Tshisekedi, U.N, Antonio Guterres, you've, We've, It's Organizations: Afp, Getty, Rescue, Crisis, CNBC, Rapid Support Forces, UAE, IOM, UN's, Organization for Migration, Sudanese Armed Forces, Democratic, Government Locations: Red Sea, Port Sudan, Ukraine, Gaza, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Libyan, Khartoum, Darfur, METEMA, Ethiopia, Metema, AFP, South Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of, Congo, DRC, Goma, North Kivu, Kigali, Kinshasa, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Shan, Sagaing, Kayah, Rakhine State, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Gambia, Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal

☆ France to Pull Troops Out of Niger Following Coup, Says Macron
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-24 | by ( Sept. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

PARIS (Reuters) -France is to end its military cooperation with Niger and withdraw its 1,500 troops tasked with battling Islamist rebels in the Sahel region following a July coup in the West African country, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday. Macron said the troops would pull out by the end of the year, a move that deals a hammer blow to France's counter-terrorism operations in the Sahel and France's influence in the region. Nonetheless, Macron said France, the former colonial power in Niger, would "not be held hostage by the putchists" who he has refused to recognise as the legitimate authority in the country. "We will consult with the putschists because we want things to happen calmly," Macron said in an interview with France's TF1 and France 2 television stations. France's ambassador was also being pulled out and would arrive back in the country in the next few hours, Macron added.

Persons: Emmanuel Macron, Macron, Mohammed Bazoum, Sybille de la Hamaide, Michel Rose, Richard Lough, Sharon Singleton Organizations: PARIS, France's TF1 Locations: France, Niger, Sahel, West, West Africa, Mali, Burkina Faso, United States, Central, Niamey

☆ France to pull troops out of Niger following coup, says Macron
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

French President Emmanuel Macron waits to welcome Pope Francis, ahead of a meeting at Palais du Pharo, on the occasion of the Mediterranean Meetings (MED 2023), in Marseille, France, September 23, 2023. REUTERS/Yara Nardi/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsPARIS, Sept 24 (Reuters) - France is to end its military cooperation with Niger and withdraw its 1,500 troops tasked with battling Islamist rebels in the Sahel region following a July coup in the West African country, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday. Macron said the troops would pull out by the end of the year, a move that deals a hammer blow to France's counter-terrorism operations in the Sahel and France's influence in the region. Nonetheless, Macron said France, the former colonial power in Niger, would "not be held hostage by the putchists" who he has refused to recognise as the legitimate authority in the country. "We will consult with the putschists because we want things to happen calmly," Macron said in an interview with France's TF1 and France 2 television stations.

Persons: Emmanuel Macron, Pope Francis, Yara, Macron, Mohammed Bazoum, Sybille de la Hamaide, Michel Rose, Richard Lough, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Palais du, REUTERS, Rights, France's TF1, Thomson Locations: Marseille, France, Niger, Sahel, West, West Africa, Mali, Burkina Faso, United States, Central, Niamey

☆ Fitch places Gabon on 'rating watch negative' following coup
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Soldiers of the Republican Guard stand on their armed pick-up in a street in Libreville, Gabon August 30, 2023 REUTERS/Scott Ngokila Acquire Licensing RightsSept 5 (Reuters) - Credit ratings agency Fitch said on Tuesday it has placed Gabon on "rating watch negative" (RWN), citing high political uncertainty in the Central African nation following a military coup last month. Fitch placed Gabon's 'B-' Long-Term Foreign-Currency and Local-Currency Issuer Default Ratings on RWN in an unscheduled review. It said the coup may have weakened Gabon's financial prospects by hurting the operational capacity of institutions responsible for its treasury and debt management, and also affecting the country's access to regional debt markets. "We assume Gabon will rely more on the regional market for financing at higher interest costs as the coup heightens the market's nervousness," Fitch said. The credit ratings agency added that a resumption of the country's IMF programme was also now unlikely.

Persons: Scott Ngokila, Fitch, Ali Bongo, Bongo, Pushkala, Shailesh Organizations: Republican Guard, REUTERS, Central, IMF, Thomson Locations: Libreville, Gabon, Central, West, Bengaluru

☆ Central African Republic President Meets Gabon Junta Leader for Talks
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( Sept. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

By Wilfried ObangomeLIBREVILLE (Reuters) - Central African Republic President Faustin Touadera held closed-door talks with Gabon's junta-appointed leader in Libreville on Tuesday in the wake of the main regional bloc's condemnation of the Aug. 30 coup. Central African bloc ECCAS has suspended Gabon's membership, but has so far stopped short of imposing sanctions in response to the non-violent military ouster of President Ali Bongo - West and Central Africa's eighth coup in three years. In a possible sign some internal political forces are rallying around the new authorities, the leader of Gabon's main opposition alliance, Albert Ondo Ossa, said he had spoken with Nguema on Tuesday. Military officers seized power shortly after Bongo was announced as its winner - a result they annulled and said was not credible. Apart from one video appeal for international support, little has been heard from Bongo since he was placed under house arrest during the coup.

Persons: Wilfried Obangome, Faustin Touadera, Ali Bongo, Brice Oligui Nguema, Bongo, Touadera, Nguema, Gabon's, Albert Ondo Ossa, Alessandra Prentice, Leslie Adler Organizations: Wilfried Obangome LIBREVILLE, Reuters, African, Gabon's, Central, Military Locations: Libreville, Gabonese, Gabon, Ondo

☆ Gabon coup leader sworn in as interim president in scene of jubilation
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-04 | by ( Gerauds Wilfried Obangome | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Gabon coup leader General Brice Oligui Nguema is sworn in as interim president during his swearing-in ceremony, in Libreville, Gabon, September 4, 2023. State TV showed images of a cheering crowd and armoured personnel carriers firing into the sea to mark the moment. PLEDGE TO RETURN POWER TO CIVILIANSNguema reiterated that his administration would organise free and fair elections, though he gave no timetable. "After this transition ... we intend to return power to civilians by organising new elections that will be free, transparent, credible and peaceful," he said. The coup had drawn cheering crowds onto the streets of the capital Libreville but condemnation from abroad.

Persons: General Brice Oligui Nguema, Gerauds Wilfried Obangome, Bongo, Ali Bongo, Nguema, Nellie Peyton, Karin Strohecker, Alessandra Prentice, Estelle Shirbon, Peter Graff, Christina Fincher Organizations: REUTERS, Central Africa LIBREVILLE, Gabon's, Central, State, Central African, United Nations, African Union, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Gabon, Libreville, West, Central, of Gabon

☆ Gabon coup leader will not rush to elections despite mounting pressure
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Trucks carrying industrial equipments wait because of the closure of the border after the coup in Gabon, in the border town of Kye-Ossi, Cameroon August 31, 2023. The officers placed Bongo under house arrest and installed Nguema as head of state, ending the Bongo family's 56-year hold on power. "Going as quickly as possible does not mean organising ad hoc elections, where we will end up with the same errors," he said. Gabon's election commission said after the election that Bongo had been re-elected with 64% of the vote, while Ondo Ossa secured almost 31%. It said it will impose sanctions on the coup leaders if they do not restore constitutional order.

Persons: Danga, Nguema, Gabon's, Ali Bongo, General Brice Oligui Nguema, Bongo, Alexandra Pangha, Albert Ondo Ossa, Noureddin Bongo Valentin, Ian Ghislain Ngoulou, Bongo Valentin, Bongo's, Mohamed Bazoum, Ondo Ossa, Pangha, Wilfried Obangome, Sonia Rolley, Libby George, Juliette Jabkhiro, Edward McAllister, Anait Miridzhanian, Sofia Christensen, Frances Kerry, Peter Graff, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: REUTERS, Monday, Military, Central Africa's, Central African, ECCAS, United Nations, African Union, BBC, Nguema, Gabon, Timothe, Ondo, Security, Thomson Locations: Gabon, Kye, Ossi, Cameroon, Monday LIBREVILLE, Libreville, Republic, France, United States, State, Guinea, Chad, Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso, Ondo

☆ African leaders work on response to Gabon military coup ousting President Bongo
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-31 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, the current chair of West African bloc ECOWAS, said on Wednesday he was working closely with other African leaders to contain what he called a "contagion of autocracy" spreading across Africa. Senior officers in Gabon announced their coup before dawn on Wednesday, shortly after an election body declared that Bongo had comfortably won a third term after Saturday's vote. The coups also showed the limited leverage of African powers once the military takes over. Military leaders elsewhere have also resisted international pressure, such as in Mali. The African Union, former colonial power France, the United States, Canada and Britain have all expressed concern about the coup.

Persons: Ali Bongo, Bongo, Bola Tinubu, General Brice Oligui Nguema, Omar, Josep Borrell Organizations: Economic, Central African States, West, ECOWAS, Military, African Union Locations: Gabon, West, Central Africa, Nigerian, Africa, Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Chad, Niger, Libreville, France, United States, Canada, Britain, European

☆ Niger junta says open to talks as Putin, US stress peace
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-15 | by ( Felix Onuah | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Souleymane Ag Anara/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsAug 15 (Reuters) - Niger's junta on Tuesday said that it was open to talks to resolve a regional crisis caused by last month's military coup, while Russia and the United States called for a peaceful resolution. Singh declined to call the takeover a coup but said it "certainly looks like an attempted coup." Military leaders in Mali and Burkina Faso have kicked out troops from former colonial power France and strengthened ties with Moscow. Putin has called for a return to constitutional order in Niger, while Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin welcomed the army takeover and offered his services. Support for Russia has appeared to surge in Niger since the coup, with junta supporters waving Russian flags at rallies and calling for France to disengage.

Persons: Mohamed Bazoum, Ali Mahamane Lamine Zeine, Mahamat Deby, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Assimi Goita, Sabrina Singh, Joe Biden's, Singh, Bola Tinubu, Russia's Wagner, Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Felix Onuah, Mahamat Ramadane, Idrees Ali, Nellie Peyton, John Stonestreet, Estelle Shirbon, Alexandra Hudson, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: REUTERS, West, Economic, West African States, ECOWAS, Islamic, Twitter, Military, Thomson Locations: Nigerien, Niamey, Niger, Russia, United States, Ghana, al Qaeda, Islamic State, West, Central Africa, Russian, West Africa's, Central Africa's, West Africa, Mali, Burkina Faso, France, Moscow, Bazoum, Western, U.S, Germany, Italy, Paris, Abuja, Chad, Washington

☆ Niger junta: ousted president could be prosecuted for high treason
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Niger's President Mohamed Bazoum addresses the 77th Session of the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. Headquarters in New York City, U.S., September 22, 2022. REUTERS/Mike Segar/File PhotoNIAMEY, Aug 14 (Reuters) - The junta that seized power in Niger in a July 26 coup said late on Sunday that ousted President Mohamed Bazoum could be prosecuted for high treason. Colonel Amadou Abdramane, a spokesperson for the junta, said on state TV that it had "assembled the necessary elements to prosecute the ousted president ... for high treason and undermining the internal and external security of Niger." The bloc's parliament on Saturday said it wanted to send a committee to meet the junta in Niamey. Writing by Anait Miridzhanian and Alessandra Prentice; Editing by Alexander Winning and Lincoln FeastOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Mohamed Bazoum, Mike Segar, Bazoum, Amadou Abdramane, Anait Miridzhanian, Alessandra Prentice, Alexander Winning Organizations: United Nations General Assembly, REUTERS, Sunday, ECOWAS, Security, Central, Thomson Locations: U.N, New York City, U.S, NIAMEY, Niger, West, Niamey, Union

☆ DNA of enslaved iron workers illuminates African American history
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-03 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

A view of the site of the Catoctin Furnace, an iron forge where enslaved people of African descent once worked, in Cunningham Falls State Park in Maryland, U.S., in this undated photograph. The site now also is providing unique insight into African American history thanks to research involving DNA obtained from the remains of 27 individuals buried in a cemetery for enslaved people at Catoctin Furnace. For African American and United States history, revealing these stories and family legacies is important to understanding and acknowledging who we are, where we came from and how we are connected to each other today," Bruwelheide added. Enslaved people of African descent were forced to work in agricultural, industrial and domestic settings in parts of the United States. In a first-of-its-kind analysis, the researchers examined historical DNA alongside genetic testing company 23andMe's personal ancestry database to identify 41,799 Americans related to the 27 individuals, including 2,975 close relatives.

Persons: Aneta, Camp David, Kari Bruwelheide, Bruwelheide, Éadaoin Harney, Andy Kill, enslavers, Kathryn Barca, Barca, Will Dunham, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: REUTERS, U.S, Smithsonian Institution, Democratic, Smithsonian's National, of, United, Workers, Catoctin, Smithsonian, Thomson Locations: Cunningham Falls, Park, Maryland, U.S, Handout, REUTERS WASHINGTON, Camp, Catoctin, West, Central Africa's, Senegal, Gambia, Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Africa, Americas, Washington, United States, Civil

☆ France condemns anti-French unrest in Niger following coup
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PARIS, July 30 (Reuters) - France condemned violence against its diplomatic mission in Niger and pledged to react strongly to any attack on its nationals or interests, as anti-French protests took place outside the French Embassy in Niamey on Sunday following last week's military coup. In a separate statement, the Foreign Affairs ministry condemned all violence against diplomatic missions and called on Niger authorities to protect the French mission as required under international law. France, the former colonial power in Niger, announced on Saturday it was cutting all development aid to the country and called for Bazoum to be returned to office following his ouster late on Wednesday. Niger has been a security partner of France, and the United States, which have used it as a base to fight an Islamist insurgency in West and Central Africa's wider Sahel region. Reporting by Elizabeth Pineau and Layli Foroudi Editing by Bernadette Baum and Frances KerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Emmanuel Macron's, Macron, Mohamed Bazoum, Elizabeth Pineau, Bernadette Baum, Frances Kerry Organizations: Foreign Affairs, Thomson Locations: France, Niger, Niamey, Niger Mahamadou, . Niger, United States, West, Central

☆ West African leaders meet over Niger coup, junta warns against intervention
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-30 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Niger's military leaders warned against any armed intervention in the country as West African leaders are set to gather in Nigeria's capital on Sunday for an emergency summit to decide on further actions to pressure the army to restore constitutional order. Heads of state of the 15-member Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), and the eight-member West African Economic and Monetary Union could suspend Niger from its institutions, cut off the country from the regional central bank and financial market, and close borders. Niger's eastern neighbor Chad, a non-member of both regional organizations, has been invited to the ECOWAS summit, a statement from the Chadian president's office said on Saturday. The West African leaders could also for the first time, consider a military intervention to restore President Mohamed Bazoum who was ousted when General Abdourahamane Tiani was declared the new head of state on Friday. Ahead of the Sunday summit, the military leaders in Niger on Saturday night, warned in a statement read on Niger national television on Saturday night against any military intervention.

Persons: Mohamed Bazoum, General Abdourahamane Tiani, Amadou Abdramane, Bazoum Organizations: Nigerien, Nigerien Party for Democracy and, West African States, ECOWAS, West African Economic, Monetary Union, Chadian, World Bank, West, Niger, European Union, African Union Locations: Niamey, Niger, Chad, . Niger, France, United States, West, Central

☆ Niger loses aid as Western countries condemn coup
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world, receiving close to $2 billion a year in official development assistance, according to the World Bank. It is also a key security partner of Western countries such as France and the United States, which use it as a base for their efforts to contain an Islamist insurgency in West and Central Africa's Sahel region. Bazoum has not been heard from since early Thursday when he was confined within the presidential palace, although the European Union, France and others say they still recognize him as the legitimate president. Niger is a key partner of the European Union in helping curb the flow of irregular migrants from sub-Saharan Africa. The United States has two military bases in Niger with some 1,100 soldiers, and also provides hundreds of millions of dollars to the country in security and development aid.

Persons: Mohamed Bazoum, General Abdourahamane Tiani, Bazoum, Josep Borrell, Antony Blinken, Moussa Aksar, Kate Abnett, Nellie Peyton, Giles Elgood Organizations: REUTERS, European, World Bank, European Union, EU, United, United Nations, West African States, Security, Thomson Locations: Niamey, Niger, NIAMEY, United States, France, West, Central, EU, Saharan Africa, Antony Blinken ., Bazoum, Nigeria, Brussels

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