Bamako, Mali | AFP | Malian and Burkinabe soldiers have killed, tortured and disappeared civilians while trying to root out jihadists in central Mali, Human Rights Watch said Friday. “Mali and Burkina Faso military operations to counter the growing presence of Islamist armed groups in central Mali have resulted in …
Read More »Egypt, US armies set to resume joint exercise
Cairo, Egypt | AFP | Egypt’s military will host a biennial exercise with the US army next week for the first time since 2009, it said in a statement on Tuesday. The Bright Star exercise, scheduled every two years since 1981, will take place this year from September 10 …
Read More »Lesotho’s army chief Lt. Gen Motsomotso shot dead
Lesotho’s army chief shot dead by rival soldiers Maseru, Lesotho | AFP | Lesotho’s army commander was shot dead by rival officers at a military barracks on Tuesday, an official told AFP, in an apparent assassination set to revive instability in the mountainous African kingdom. “The commander (Khoantle Motsomotso) has been …
Read More »US Army chief of staff Gen Milley condemns racism after deadly protests
Washington, United States | AFP | US military leaders have been denouncing racism and intolerance since a white supremacist rally in Virginia — with condemnation mounting after President Donald Trump said counter-protesters also were to blame for the violence. Trump on Tuesday held a New York press conference in which he …
Read More »‘UPDF has not, and will not deploy in Kenya’
‘Uganda army has not, and will not deploy in Kenya’ Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) has refuted media reports that they are on standby to support security operations in Kenya. “The UPDF wishes to totally denounce these allegations which are totally false, alarmist and misleading,” said Brig. …
Read More »First batch of RPF regional troops arrive in South Sudan
150 troops from Rwanda arrive in South Sudan for the regional protection force (RPF). Juba, South Sudan | AFP | The head of South Sudan’s UN mission announced on Tuesday the long-awaited arrival of troops from a regional force meant to patrol roads and quell violence in the war-ravaged country. …
Read More »South Sudan army takes Machar stronghold
Juba, South Sudan | AFP | South Sudan government forces said Monday they had seized the rebel stronghold of Pagak near the Ethiopian border, after weeks of heavy fighting that forced thousands to flee the region. Military spokesman Dickson Gatluak said rebel forces loyal to exiled former deputy president Riek Machar …
Read More »South Sudan judge orders rape victims to appear at trial
Juba, South Sudan | AFP | Aid workers that were raped during an attack on their compound in South Sudan must testify in-person against a group of soldiers on trial for the assault, a judge ruled Friday. The decision is the latest frustration for victims of the attack on the …
Read More »Absence of victims leaves holes in Juba hotel trial
Juba, South Sudan | AFP | Witnesses described looting and finding a dead body, but the trial of 12 soldiers accused of raping foreign aid workers in Juba proceeded Thursday in the absence of the victims. The chilling attack on a hotel compound during fierce fighting in the South Sudanese capital …
Read More »AU chair questions US stance on African peacekeeping
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | AFP |The African Union’s new chair Moussa Faki Mahamat on Wednesday questioned US commitment to fighting terrorism on the continent after it blocked efforts to get UN funding for an anti-jihadist force in the Sahel. “This is a specific case of a certain number of African …
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