Intelligence. Comprehensive approach, analysis and security capabilities.Mali-Sahel Region
Rabia Golden
11/01/2021 – ItaMilRadar reported that a NATO Global Hawk RQ-4D “Phoenix” took off on Friday morning bound for southern Europe, heading towards Libya for a surveillance mission.
NATO recently carried out a similar mission over the Gulf of Sirte and that Friday mission appears to achieve similar goals, according to ItaMilRadar.
Libya Observer
Sahel-Elite (Bamako-Mali)
Author: Giovanni Giacalone / Pravda Report
11/01/2021 – On Friday, January 8th the GNA leader Fayez al-Sarraj met with an Italian government delegation led by Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte and Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio; the official meeting took place in Palazzo Chigi.
The visit occurred during a very complicated phase for Libya as violence between the GNA and the LNA is about to erupt once again, and Serraj very likely travelled to Rome with the objective of asking the Italian government for more support. Continuer à lire … « Italy, Qatar and Turkey in Libya »
By Sami Zaptia
08/01/2021 -Tunisia’s Foreign Ministry stressed Monday (4 December) that Libya will top the agenda of the UN Security Council. Tunisia assumed the rotating presidency of the Security Council for January on Monday as a Non-Permanent Member of the Security Council in 2021. Continuer à lire … « Libya tops Tunisia-led Security Council January agenda: Tunisian Foreign Ministry »
22/12/2020 -Bangladesh Air Force (BAF) is going to replace its 110-member contingent at United Nations Mission in Mali (MINUSMA).
Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Masihuzzaman Serniabat briefed the members of contingent at BAF Base Bashar, Tejgaon today, said a press release.
While addressing the briefing, Chief of Air Staff advised them to discharge their duties with honesty, professionalism and sincerity to uphold good reputation for BAF as well as for the country.
He emphasized on preventive actions to reduce the transmission of Coronavirus and remain extra careful about it.
Thereafter, he participated in a special munajat arranged for success of the contingent.
A total 110 BAF members will depart in the 1st week of January 2021 for Mali led by contingent commander Group Captain Abdullah Al Farooq.
Among others, Principal Staff Officers of Air Headquarters, Air Officers of Dhaka area, senior BAF officers of Air Headquarters and Bases were present on the occasion.
BSS News
Sahel-Elite (Bamako-Mali)
02/10/2020 – Morocco’s Minister of Justice Mohamed Ben Abdelkader said on Thursday that Morocco is ready to upgrade its judicial and institutional tools to combat money laundering and terrorism financing.
The minister’s declaration took place at a meeting with the National ِAssociation of Notaries under the theme, “The role of justice in the fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism.” Continuer à lire … « Morocco Upgrades Legal Tools to Combat Money Laundering, Terrorism Fiancing »
by Hilal Kaplan Daily Sabah
02/10/2020 – Mapping the Turkish Military’s Expanding Footprint » was the title of a study featured last year in Bloomberg and several other prominent publications. In light of recent developments, the Eastern Mediterranean and Azerbaijan have also been added to the map. The article written by Selcan Hacaoğlu starts by saying that the Turkish military hasn’t been as effective in as many areas globally since the Ottoman Empire, and explains how it has riveted its political influence with its military presence in Syria, Iraq, Qatar and Somalia and as a peacekeeping force in Afghanistan and the Balkans. Continuer à lire … « Mapping the Turkish military’s expanding footprint »
01/10/2020 – Defense Secretary Dr. Mark T. Esper and Tunisian Defense Minister Ibrahim Bartagi agreed on a road map for defense cooperation during meetings in the capital city of Tunis.
The road map discussed yesterday charts a 10-year course for cooperation between the two countries.
Tunisia is a major non-NATO ally of the United States and already works with the Defense Department on many shared interests and concerns. The agreement will advance these shared security interests, said a U.S. defense official traveling with the secretary.
The road map recognizes the importance of the U.S.-Tunisian relationship in North Africa and the Mediterranean. Tunisia is a « security exporter » in the region, participating in many exercises and cooperating with other nations in security matters.
Terrorism and threats from violent extremist organizations are always a danger in the region, and Tunisia is intimately involved in looking for solutions to the migrant crisis. Esper said he is impressed by the Tunisians’ efforts to enhance their capabilities against terrorists, but also to promote stability and security on the African continent.
« The road map is a shared understanding of where our shared priorities are, » the defense official said speaking on background. « It talks about shared objectives, shared interests and shared threats. These are areas where we can work together. »
The road map took two years to negotiate, and it is a clear-eyed look at the relationship and suggests ways to close capability gaps. « We both want to improve [Tunisia’s] military capabilities and training to improve [U.S. and Tunisian] interoperability. »
Some of the shared interests include freedom of navigation, intelligence sharing, humanitarian operations and disaster relief, the official said.
The official would not speak specifically on what gaps the nations see in their military capabilities, but spoke of gaps that African nations, in general, experience — airlift, command and control, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance shortages and the like.
The 10-year road map is a relatively new program. It allows the nations to begin the planning and funding cycles in such a way as to build incrementally. The official said this may be a blueprint for negotiations with other nations in Africa and elsewhere.
, DOD NEWS
US DEPT OF DEFENSE
Sahel-Elite (Bamako-Mali)
Algiers-Reuters
01/10/2020 U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper made a rare visit to Algeria on Thursday for talks with the president about war-torn Libya and the troubled Sahel region to the south of the Sahara.
oth countries are alarmed by the threat posed by Islamist militant groups in North Africa and the Sahel, and Algeria is weighing a more active military role against them outside its own borders.
They held “talks on Libya and the Sahel and both parties agreed to maintain cooperation and coordination,” a statement from Algeria’s presidency said.
Esper’s visit is the first by a U.S. Defense Secretary to Algeria since Donald Rumsfeld’s in 2006 and he is also the most senior American official yet to meet President Abdelmadjid Tebboune.
Tebboune took office in December after last year’s mass protests led the army to push his predecessor Abdelaziz Bouteflika to step down after 20 years in power.
The new president has proposed changes to the constitution aimed at mollifying the opposition protest movement, but the reforms would also give the army new powers to intervene in neighbouring states.
“Mark Esper wants to discuss the Algerian army’s possible role in the region once the new constitution is passed as it allows peace-keeping operations overseas,” a Western diplomat in Algeria familiar with the matter told Reuters.
An Algerian source said the talks were expected to focus on Libya, where nine years of chaos after the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi have created space for militants, and Mali, where French troops are trying to help quell an Islamist insurgency.
“Algeria has an influence in Mali. It showed it can help. The Americans understood that French military intervention did not curb terrorism,” a senior Algerian security source, who asked not to be named, told Reuters.
“As for Libya, it is well known that Algeria maintains good ties with all the players including tribes and personalities,” the senior source told Reuters.
REUTERS
Sahel-Elite (Bamako-Mali)
01/10/2020 – Le travail de sécurisation du territoire se poursuit au Burkina Faso, a déclaré mercredi le président du Mouvement du peuple pour le progrès (MPP, parti au pouvoir), Simon Compaoré, le lendemain du dépôt du dossier de candidature du président Roch Marc Christian Kaboré, pour briguer un deuxième mandat le 22 novembre prochain. Continuer à lire … « Burkina Faso : le travail de sécurisation du territoire se poursuit (parti au pouvoir) »
30/09/2020 – Le Premier ministre nigérien Brigi Rafini a invité les partenaires comme ceux de l’Union européenne à poursuivre et à renforcer l’appui consenti dans le domaine de la sécurité au profit de son pays, face à la situation sécuritaire qui reste préoccupante notamment dans la zone des trois frontières Burkina-Mali-Niger et dans le bassin du Lac Tchad, a-t-on appris mardi de source officielle à Niamey. Continuer à lire … « Le Niger invite ses partenaires à renforcer leur appui dans le domaine de la sécurité »
Sahel-Elite (Bamako-Mali) 