Although Islamist forces have the edge in Tripoli, Haftar’s forces are ahead in Benghazi as a new battle is joined over control of oil revenues
The two main political camps are fighting for power in two distinct conflicts, one centred on Tripoli, the other on Benghazi. General Khalifa Haftar's 'Operation Dignity' troops are...
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Peace appears to be returning to the M'zab region (capital Ghardaïa) of southern Algeria where communal violence stoked tension in the run-up to April's presidential election. The clashes...
While President Abdel Fatah el Sisi and the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces handle substantial foreign affairs matters, Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry is usually left with little...
Slim Riahi, a 42-year-old Bizerta-born businessman with British and Tunisian citizenship, is pitting himself against political heavyweight Béji Caïd Essebsi of Nidaa Tounus (Tunisian Call) in the first...
Tunisia elects a new, 217-member Parliament on 26 October and all eyes are on the possible coalitions that will follow. A formal coalition between the front-runners, the Islamist...
Ahead of key national elections, concern is mounting about the legacy of bad loans from the time of President Ben Ali
Dealing with bad debts from the Zine el Abidine Ben Ali era which threaten the banking system has proved so problematic that the government has been contradicting itself....
Multinationals are starting to see Egypt’s potential as a strategic hub but there few signs of a major revival in foreign interest
Egypt is taking halting steps towards dismantling obstacles in the way of attracting foreign investment, However, it looks as though it will continue to be dependent on support...
The Islamist revolt in the peninsula grew rapidly after Mubarak’s fall. Now, neither government forces nor their jihadist foes can control the area
Over the last ten years, radical Islamists have gained a foothold among the disaffected tribes of the Sinai peninsula and now a full-blown insurgency is in progress. The...
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Egypt and its new ally the UAE join battle against jihadist fighters while two parliaments compete for power on the ground
After Tripoli International Airport fell to Islamist-led forces from Misurata on 23 August, the victors were quick to announce that they would resuscitate the country's former Parliament, the...
Two men played key roles in the double attack: one using Sudan as his springboard, the other under the noses of the US army, CIA and FBI
Fazul Abdullah Mohamed Ali, a Comoran, and Ali Mohamed, an Egyptian, both played key roles in the 1998 Embassy bombings in East Africa, according to court documents: the...
Some see the kingdom as a star in this troubled region but a political vacuum at the top and a lack of ideas are holding it back
Prescient members of the ruling class are feeling uneasy, even in Casablanca's smartest restaurants and on its widest boulevards, thronged by designer shops and choked with luxury cars....
The tension between Egypt and its long-time ally, the United States, was evident at this week's Africa summit following US criticism of Cairo's human rights record. New Foreign...
The government is rallying the people behind a major campaign against the jihadists despite weak economic indicators
Tunisian security forces are beefing up their campaign against Islamist militants in the Mont Chaambi mountains along the Algerian border with a major purchase of helicopters from the...
Unable to take on General Haftar's forces in Benghazi, jihadist militias strike at his allies in Tripoli
Islamist militias aligned with Libya's Muslim Brotherhood have mounted their most serious counter-offensive yet against forces loyal to General Khalifa Belqasim Haftar in a series of attacks in...
The subsidy cuts have much to do with keeping the El Sisi regime’s benefactors on-side but Egypt's energy prices are still among the lowest in the world
As the Egyptian public digested the news on 5 July that the prices of petrol, diesel and electricity had all been sharply increased, three senior economic ministers flew...
The country’s centre of gravity may be moving towards Benghazi but away from the Muslim Brotherhood
It may not be until after the Eid celebrations at the end of Ramadan that Libya's third interim Parliament can appoint an executive. The results of the 25...
Executions have resumed in Egypt, Africa Confidential understands. At least seven people are believed to have been hanged since 16 June.
Vol 55 No 13 |
- MAURITANIA
President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz surprised no one with his re-election on 22 June. That gives him a second five-year term with 81.89% of the vote. His campaign...
Vol 55 No 13 |
- EGYPT
- ETHIOPIA
Egypt's President Abdel Fatah el Sisi was due to meet Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, on 26 June to try to resolve their differences...
Bouteflika’s infirmity symbolises a rudderless state. The regime lacks the strength to produce domestic reform or regional reliability
It may have been a landslide but President Abdelaziz Bouteflika's April election victory failed to convince. It nonetheless left him and the powerful machine behind him promising a...
Vol 55 No 12 |
- ALGERIA
- MAGHREB
Reports of Algerian forces operating in Libya underline the size of the regional security challenge and raise questions about Algiers’ leadership
A rise in protest in the south is adding to concern in Algiers that its vast Saharan landmass, which holds most of its key oil and gas reserves,...
Vol 55 No 12 |
- EGYPT
- LIBYA
- SUDAN
Tension is still rising between Khartoum and Cairo as Egypt's new leader President Abdel Fatah Khalil el Sisi sets out his strategic priorities. Top of the list is...
El Sisi is concentrating on building a political power base and leaving trusted technocrats to tackle the tough economic challenges ahead
With the formalities of yesterday's presidential inauguration behind him, Field Marshal Abdel Fatah Khalil el Sisi's key new challenge is to ensure that he wins a solid majority...
Most of the senior security officers who served ex-President Zine el Abidine Ben Ali are being freed. Many were sentenced to life imprisonment for their role in killing...
The election result was never in doubt but polling was extended in the hope of improving El Sisi’s mandate and obtaining a better turnout
Abdel Fatah Khalil el Sisi will start his presidency knowing that a significant proportion of the public has faith in his pledge to bring security and eventual prosperity...
Retired General Khalifa Haftar has taken on the Islamist militias that dominate the east and intends to capture Parliament and seize power
A group of senior officers led by General Khalifa Belqasim Haftar, Chief of Staff under the late Colonel Moammar el Gadaffi, is drawing militias to its banner from...
Multilateral lenders and Western governments shower Tunisia with credit in the hope the country does not go the way of neighbouring Libya or Egypt
The World Bank became the latest lender to signal its support for the interim government in Tunis when it lent it US$100 million last week to help banks...
The National Congress Party’s support for Egypt’s Muslim Brothers is exacting a heavy political and economic cost
Financial sanctions on Sudan by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are a political warning shot. The immediate targets are Khartoum's backing for Egypt's banned Muslim Brotherhood...
The Field Marshal deploys a full armoury of marketing and social media tools to extend his political base as he launches his presidential campaign
One of the first public appearances that Field Marshal Abdel Fatah Saeed Hussein Khalil el Sisi made after stepping down as Defence Minister and Army Commander on 26...
Vol 55 No 8 |
- WESTERN SAHARA
Two former United Nations officials are lobbying for human rights monitoring to be added to the Mission des nations unies pour le référendum dans le Sahara Occidental (Minurso)...
Field Marshal Abdel Fatah Khalil el Sisi has moved his nominees to key posts in the armed forces. This should secure his continued dominance there after resigning as...
The shareholders of Egypt's Ajwa for Food Industries Company are embroiled in a long-running dispute with the former non-executive Chairman, the Saudi Arabian billionaire Sheikh Mohamed bin Issa...
Vol 55 No 7 |
- EGYPT
- ETHIOPIA
Ethiopia risks isolation in the row with Egypt over the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) now that the previously secret Independent Panel of Experts' report...
The Norwegian-based company Aker Solutions has decided to stop providing oil services to its drilling rig in disputed waters off Western Sahara after Africa Confidential publicised the case...
US prosecutors are scrutinising the methods used to get lucrative Libyan investments and the role of brokers and agents
The United States regulatory authorities are closing in on several cases involving US financial institutions and possible bribes and commissions for the late Colonel Moammer el Gadaffi's son,...
Sahrawi officials are again trying to get the UN to intervene with oil companies drilling in disputed offshore areas
A legal battle may be brewing between the Polisario Front, which since 1973 has aspired to rule Western Sahara, and Norwegian oil services company Aker Solutions over offshore...
About a month after the United States Senate passed a bill that, very unusually, affects the disputed territory of Western Sahara, Washington lobbyists Gray Global Advisors revealed they...
The late February reshuffle came as a surprise because the quest for ministers will begin again after the presidential and parliamentary elections, due in the coming months. Some...
No one yet knows what systems will be used in the coming elections but the conduct of the last referendum raised some big questions
Election observers have yet to learn what kind of electoral system will be employed in the presidential election that will precede parliamentary polls. However, for those experts interested...
Vol 55 No 4 |
- EGYPT
- ETHIOPIA
Egypt is protesting to the United Nations Security Council and the International Criminal Court about the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. It will also boycott a meeting in Khartoum...
The head of the Egyptian military looks certain to be elected president in the next three months but his policies are a mystery
The popular clamour of ‘Sisi for President!’ started within days of General Abdel Fattah Khalil el Sisi removing Mohamed Mursi from the presidency on 3 July 2013. Ever...
The region has long been a bone of contention between Algeria and Morocco – and natural resource opportunities are forcing it up the agenda
The impasse over the sovereignty of the former Spanish Sahara is still preventing the five Union du Maghreb arabe (UMA) nations from achieving regional unity. Prospects of ending...
A deteriorating economic situation adds to political tension as parties manoeuvre for next year’s elections
Morocco seems to have emerged stronger from the Arab Spring. The constitution promises a more open political system and improved human rights. A coalition government led by the...
Despite his infirmity, Bouteflika is set to run again in April for a fourth term. The ruling elite is bereft of political or economic ideas
Inconceivable though it seemed only a few months ago that the enfeebled, 76-year-old President Abdelaziz Bouteflika could stand again after his stroke, that is exactly what he is...
The President will hold the political ring while coopting minor politicians and parties, but he’s keeping out of the regional operation in Mali
Although the ruling Union pour la République suffered setbacks in some smaller regions in last year’s general election, it has consolidated its grip and still monopolises the political...
The political calendar is crowded as the forces that took control of the state and ousted Mursi seek to strengthen their position
Egyptian electors will be called to the ballot box at least three times in 2014, to approve the new constitution, elect a president and choose a single-chamber parliament....