When Boko Haram, a Nigerian terrorist insurgency, reemerged from its year-long hiatus in 2010, few in Washington took notice. The bombing of the United Nations headquarters last August in Abuja changed this. Last November, the Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence of the House Homeland Security Committee released a report and …
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with Libyan Prime Minister Abdurrahim el-Keib yesterday and expressed optimism about Libya’s future. But Libya faces major problems in making the difficult transition to a stable democracy. Libya’s “Arab Spring,” which appeared to have a bright future after the fall of Muammar Qadhafi’s dictatorship …
U.S. policy toward sub-Saharan Africa seldom achieves headline status except in times of most acute crisis. Yet the vast continent of one billion, with all its hope, problems, and conflicts, requires sustained, high-level U.S. attention. Given the constraints on time of the President and Secretary of State, it often falls …
A year after the “Arab Spring” struck Bahrain, the opposition movement has changed significantly from its original supporters. Initiated by a youth movement demanding political reform, the campaign, though still including a young population, has evolved into a mass political movement with a broad array of political backgrounds. The following …
Yesterday, Heritage’s 2012 Index of Economic Freedom was released, and Africa features prominently. With an average score gain of 0.2 points, reflecting a net gain of economic freedom in 22 countries, sub-Saharan Africa is once again the most improved region. While scores of Western nations have seen their ratings plummet …
Although Libya has rid itself of the Muammar Qadhafi regime, it faces an uncertain future endangered by radical Islamist factions, warring militia commanders, tribal rivalries, a lack of democratic traditions, and a civil society ravaged by decades of authoritarian rule. Last week, two militias clashed violently in a turf war …
Since South Sudan gained independence last January, the world’s newest country has many challenges to face. The government in Juba must quickly and efficiently address some of the most basic issues that many in the West take for granted, such as roads, clean water, and electricity. In short, it must …
Libya’s interim government gradually is taking shape. On Monday the Transitional National Council (TNC) announced that it had elected a new Prime Minister, Abdurraheem el-Keib, who will serve until elections in June for a national assembly that will write a new constitution. El-Keib, a dual Libyan-American citizen, is a U.S.-educated …
Following a devastating suicide blast earlier in the week in Somalia’s capital city of Mogadishu, leaders from the regional terror group al Shabaab issued a statement declaring that the perpetrator of the attack was American Abdisalan Hussein Ali. In an audio tape released by al Shabaab, and purported to be …
