North Africa and the Sahel

Mali's constitutional court on Friday (28 May) named coup leader, Colonel Assimi Goïta, as the country's transitional president. Col Goïta had already declared himself interim president on Wednesday, two days after seizing power in a military coup. The court said this was due to the "vacancy in the presidency".

The G5 Sahel was created in 2014 with the aim of uniting and co-ordinating actions to fight terrorism in the five countries it brings together, namely Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Mauritania and Chad. Since then, the United Nations has worked with the security alliance to co-ordinate economic and social development programs, as well as a unified response in terms of security and the fight against terrorist and criminal groups operating in the region.

Once again, Mali is facing a serious political crisis. Nine months after a putsch organised by the military, the president and the prime minister of Mali’s transitional government, Bah Ndaw and Moctar Ouane, were arrested by the army on May 24

Libya’s parliament, known as the House of Representatives (HoR, will hold an official session on Monday (24 May) in Tobruk. It has called members to attend the sessions which will discuss the 2021 budget and appointments for key sovereign positions.

The town of Ceuta, together with its sister town Mellila a bit further down the Mediterranean coast, is an anachronism. Whilst situated on the African continent the towns are recognised as being fully part of Spain – a colonial hang-over that has taken a life of its own. The enclaves were once considered of strategic importance for the defence of Spain. They have now become springboards for illegal migration into Europe. Yesterday, 5,000 arrived, taking the authorities by surprise. They say the migrants either swam around the border fences that jut out into the sea or walked across at low tide.

Exhausted by a decade of conflict, Libyans have moved surprisingly fast to implement a peace deal that some thought impossible only a few months ago. Deep-rooted internal divisions, greed among leaders, and the shadow of external patrons, may yet frustrate the quest for peace. 

The brigade raided several hideouts for gangs that had been implicated in kidnapping and theft activities in Bani Walid. Creating a safe environment is one of the key priorities of the Libyan government. Brigade 444 had also released several Egyptian abductees in March.