INTL Region In Focus: The Sahel, it's issues with terrorism, it's coups and it's future

[Housecarl]

Posted for fair use.......

Dozens Killed in Nigeria Jihadist Attacks: Residents, Militias

At least 38 people were killed this week in suspected extremist attacks on loggers and a village in northeast Nigeria, anti-jihadist militia and residents told AFP on Friday.

thedefensepost.com

Dozens Killed in Nigeria Jihadist Attacks: Residents, Militias​

Staff Writer With AFP Follow on X April 4, 2026

At least 38 people were killed this week in suspected extremist attacks on loggers and a village in northeast Nigeria, anti-jihadist militia and residents told AFP on Friday.

Late on Tuesday, fighters from Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), a group linked to the Islamic State group, rounded up loggers in a forest outside the town of Mafa, killing 27 and abducting 18 others, two anti-jihadist militia said.

“They slit the throats of 27 loggers and took away 18 others whose fate is still unknown,” Babakura Kolo, a militia fighter assisting the Nigerian military, said.

His account was supported by Ibrahim Liman, another militia fighter who said the loggers were from Mafa, 60 kilometers (40 miles) from the Borno state capital, Maiduguri.

A triple suicide bombing last month killed 23 people in Maiduguri, in one of the deadliest attacks in the state capital in years.

Amnesty International said in a post on X that “20 internally displaced persons” were killed and 30 abducted while collecting firewood in the forest near Mafa.

ISWAP and rival jihadist organisation Boko Haram have increasingly targeted farmers, fishermen, loggers, herders, and metal scrap collectors in the region, accusing them of spying on them and passing information to the military.

On Monday, ISWAP fighters raided Kautikeri village outside the town of Chibok, killing 11 people and burning homes, a community leader said.

“The terrorists attacked the village and killed 11 people. They burned several homes and barns before retreating to their enclave in nearby Sambisa forest,” said Manasseh Allen, head of the Chibok Area Development Association (CADA), a sociocultural union in the Chibok district.

Chibok is a scar on Nigeria following the abduction by Boko Haram of 276 schoolgirls, which sparked international outrage and the global “BringBackOurGirls” campaign.

Some girls subsequently escaped, and others were freed years later. Around 100 are still missing.

There was no statement from the authorities on the latest attacks.

Militant groups have ramped up attacks on military and civilian targets in Africa’s most populous country in recent months.

 

[Plain Jane]

Nigeria troops rescue 31 Easter worshippers after deadly church attack

Nigeria’s military said Sunday it rescued 31 worshippers abducted during Easter services in northwestern Kaduna state, after troops engaged gunmen in a firefight, though at least five people were killed…

www.france24.com

Nigeria troops rescue 31 Easter worshippers after deadly church attack​

Africa
Nigeria’s military said Sunday it rescued 31 worshippers abducted during Easter services in northwestern Kaduna state, after troops engaged gunmen in a firefight, though at least five people were killed in the attack. The assault on a Catholic and an evangelical church underscores worsening insecurity in the region, where criminal gangs and militant groups have intensified raids and kidnappings.

Issued on: 06/04/2026 - 03:07Modified: 06/04/2026 - 08:16
2 minReading time
Share
By:
FRANCE 24

The Nigerian military said Sunday it had rescued 31 worshippers seized from Easter celebrations in northwestern Kaduna state, though at least five others were killed, as the country's security comes increasingly under international scrutiny.


Gunmen raided a Catholic and an evangelical church, the Christian Association of Nigeria chairman for Kaduna state Caleb Bawa Ma'aji told AFP.

The kidnapping at a village located around 100 kilometres (62 miles) north of the capital, Abuja, occurred despite the police chief ordering a "massive security deployment" including at places of worship during the Easter festival.

"Through a swift response, (troops) have successfully foiled a terrorist attack leading to the rescue of 31 civilians abducted during an Easter church service" in the village of Ariko, the military said in a statement.


The troops engaged the attackers in a "firefight", forcing the "terrorists to abandon 31 hostages", the military said.

It said five victims had been killed by the attackers, but Ma'aji said that seven people were killed during the attack.

"The incident that happened this morning was quite unfortunate," said Ma'aji.

In January, bandits rounded up more than 170 worshippers from three churches during mass in Kaduna.

Authorities said 80 escaped and the rest were released following negotiations after three weeks in custody.

Kaduna is one several states in northwest and central Nigeria that have for years been terrorised by criminal gangs called bandits that carry out deadly raids on communities and kidnap for ransom.

Despite the bandits being motivated by financial gains, they are increasingly collaborating with jihadists from the northeast.

It was unclear if the military's use of "terrorists" was referring to jihadists or bandits.

While the army has been beefing up its deployment to the region to combat the groups, Nigeria has continued to see a rise in violence.

That has drawn the attention of US President Donald Trump, who has alleged there is a "genocide" of Christians in Nigeria.

In a separate incident, Nigeria's military killed 65 bandits in Zamfara state, according to a security report seen by AFP on Sunday.

The offensive was carried out in the northwestern Zamfara state where police on Saturday confirmed a mass kidnapping carried out earlier in the week. But the army offensive was in a different district from where the kidnapping was reported.


At "least 65 bandits" had been killed, in what the security report called a "major breakthrough".

(FRANCE 24 with AFP)

 

[auxman]

From AlertsUSA:

State Dept authorizes voluntary departure of non-emerg USGOV employees & family from US Embassy Abuja due to a deteriorating security situation.

The Global Terrorism Index 2026 ranks Nigeria fourth worldwide for terrorist attacks, with a 46% rise in terrorism-related deaths in 2025. Overlapping threats from jihadists, criminal gangs, ethnic militias, and urban gangs have created a dispersed security vacuum that stretches Nigerian forces thin. The government has regained some territory from earlier insurgencies but struggles with accountability, intelligence gaps, and porous borders.

On April 8, 2026, the U.S. Department of State updated its Nigeria Travel Advisory to Level 3 (“Reconsider Travel”) and explicitly authorized non-emergency U.S. government employees and their family members to depart Embassy Abuja “due to the deteriorating security situation.” Several additional states (Plateau, Jigawa, Kwara, Niger, Taraba) were added to the “Do Not Travel” list. The Embassy continues limited operations but stresses that terrorists may strike public venues without warning.

Evacuation (Authorized or Ordered Departure) of non-emergency USG personnel is triggered when the Chief of Mission, in coordination with the State Department, determines that risks to American diplomats exceed acceptable levels. Key factors include credible intelligence of imminent terrorist plots targeting U.S. facilities or personnel (as seen in past Abuja alerts), a sharp surge in violence near diplomatic areas, host-government inability to guarantee security, widespread anti-U.S. unrest, or operational constraints that prevent the Embassy from fulfilling its mission safely. The April 2026 authorization reflects precisely such an assessment amid ongoing national deterioration.



Security Alert

U.S. Mission Nigeria

April 8, 2026

Location: Abuja, Federal Capital Territory

Event: On April 8, 2026, the U.S. Department of State authorized the voluntary departure of non-emergency U.S. government employees and family members from U.S. Embassy Abuja due to the deteriorating security situation. The U.S. Embassy in Abuja will remain open but will have limited ability to provide emergency services to U.S. citizens in Nigeria. The Embassy, in consultation with the State Department, will reassess this status regularly. The U.S. Consulate General in Lagos will continue to provide routine and emergency services to U.S. citizens in Nigeria.

The Department of State Travel Advisory for Nigeria remains at Level 3, recommending travelers reconsider travel to Nigeria due to crime, terrorism, civil unrest, kidnapping, armed gangs, and inconsistent availability of health care services.

 

[Plain Jane]

Mali backs Morocco’s plan for disputed Western Sahara, ending support for the Sahrawi Republic

Mali has backed Morocco’s plan to offer autonomy to Western Sahara while maintaining sovereignty over the region.

apnews.com

Mali backs Morocco’s plan for disputed Western Sahara, ending support for the Sahrawi Republic​

A Sahrawi refugee woman stands at the door of her home in the Boujdour refugee camp, Algeria, on Oct. 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue, File)
By BABA AHMED
Updated 12:10 PM EDT, April 10, 2026

BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — Mali on Friday backed Morocco’s plan to offer autonomy to Western Sahara but establish sovereignty over the disputed region, endorsing a plan to end a decades-long conflict between the Moroccan government and the indigenous Sahrawi people.

The Malian transitional government said Friday it was withdrawing its recognition of the pro-independence Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic as part of its backing for the Moroccan plan, which has growing support from African allies, the Trump administration in the U.S. and most European Union members.

In a statement released by the Malian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the government said “the Republic of Mali supports the autonomy plan proposed by Morocco as the only serious and credible basis for resolving this dispute and considers that genuine autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty is the most realistic solution.”

Western Sahara is a phosphate-rich stretch of coastal desert the size of Colorado that was under Spanish rule until 1975. It’s claimed by both Morocco and the Polisario Front, which operates out of refugee camps in southwestern Algeria and claims to represent the Sahrawi people indigenous to the disputed territory.

In October of 2025, the United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution placing Morocco’s proposed autonomy plan for Western Sahara at the center of efforts to resolve the conflict. The resolution does not determine the territory’s final status, but describes the Moroccan initiative as a “serious, credible, and realistic” basis for reaching a political solution.

The resolution referred to Morocco’s plan as a basis for negotiation. As with similar resolutions in previous years, the text made no mention of a referendum on self-determination that includes independence as an option, which is the solution long favored by the pro-independence Polisario Front and its allies, including Algeria, Russia, and China.


After years of conflict, Western Sahara has recently emerged as a hot spot for investment, drawing European and American firms interested in fishing, agriculture and infrastructure projects that would allow for the transmission of wind and solar power.

 

[Publius]

The only answer is an all out war on islam eradicate it.

 

[Plain Jane]

Gunmen in Nigeria attack a passenger bus and abduct students

Gunmen have abducted students on their way to university examinations in Nigeria's Benue state. Officials say the gunmen attacked a passenger bus Thursday.

apnews.com

Gunmen in Nigeria attack a passenger bus and abduct students​

By DYEPKAZAH SHIBAYAN
Updated 11:12 AM EDT, April 17, 2026
Leer en español

​

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Gunmen attacked a passenger bus in Nigeria ‘s Benue state, abducting some students on their way to university examinations, officials said.

The students and other passengers were abducted Thursday along the Otukpo-Makurdi highway, Benue Gov. Hyacinth Alia said in a statement.

The governor did not specify how many were taken, but local media said 14 passengers were on board.

“The targeting of innocent citizens, particularly students on their way to sit for examinations, is unacceptable and stands against every norm of humanity and civil order,” Alia said.

Search and rescue operations are underway in the central state to ensure the safe return of all abducted persons, the governor said.
No group has claimed responsibility for Thursday’s abductions. Benue has been a hot spot for armed violence in a region where armed gangs often target remote villagers and travelers with violent killings and kidnapping for ransom.

Students’ kidnappings have come to define the insecurity in Africa’s most populous nation, and analysts say it’s often because armed gangs see schools and students as “strategic” targets to draw more attention.

Alia urged residents to remain calm and to continue to cooperate with security agencies on rescue efforts and other operations.

“We will continue to take decisive actions to protect lives and property,” he added.