The African Tribune

Officially, Lomé presents its role as a regional mediation effort in the name of peace. In practice, the presence of foreign armed movement cadres on Togolese soil lays bare a far more cynical political mechanism. The loud arrest of Luc Beyam, a senior official of the Movement for Justice and Rectification in Chad (MJRT), over nothing more than unpaid hotel bills, is just the visible tip of a tacit bargain. Behind the asylum offered to these fighters lies a clear strategic trade: by giving Chadian insurgents a safe haven, President Faure Gnassingbé secures in return their know-how, their surveillance networks and their strike capacity — enough to lock down the domestic political arena and smother any national challenge. Protection in exchange for a security lock-down The installation of C...

Weeks have passed and still no sign of Moussa Kaka. The Nigerien journalist, director general of Radio Télévision Saraounia (RTS) and one of the most recognisable voices in Sahelian news, has not been seen or heard from since he left his home in Niamey. No official reason for his absence has been issued by the transitional authorities, and the silence around his fate has hardened into a fresh test for press freedom in the region. What is known about the case Kaka left his residence in the capital and never returned. No arrest warrant, detention notice or formal charge has been made public by any branch of the state, and the steps taken by his family, colleagues and lawyer with security services and police stations across Niamey have produced nothing but closed doors. That absence of any o...

Yaoundé — Four journalists in Cameroon have been handed severe penalties in a controversial case sparked by a single pair of eyeglasses belonging to a high-ranking minister. The ruling has sent shockwaves through the media landscape and raised serious concerns about press freedom in the country. Court ruling delivers heavy blow to Cameroonian press The High Court of Yaoundé has concluded the long-running dispute over a pair of eyeglasses allegedly belonging to Cameroon’s Minister of Mines, Industry and Technological Development. The case centered on accusations that the journalists published false information linking the minister to the possession of unauthorized luxury eyewear. Despite objections from defense teams highlighting the lack of concrete evidence, the court sided with t...

At least 358 fighters from the Russian paramilitary force operating in Mali have been killed since it first deployed at the end of 2021. The contingent arrived under the Wagner banner and now fights under the Africa Corps label. The figure — assembled from cross-checked conflict data and field information — marks a threshold that sits badly with the official line about a security reconquest across the Sahel. A milestone that undercuts the reconquest narrative For three years, Mali's military authorities have presented their Russian partnership as the answer to a decade of failed counter-insurgency. The death toll tells a different story: a steady flow of losses that has accelerated sharply over the past year, draining a force that was supposed to tip the balance on the battlefield. Sévaré ...