The Vanguard, a Nigerian daily, carried a report on September 28, confirmed by the Ministry of Defense, that 1,200 Nigerian soldiers, police, and Department of State Services (DSS) are being trained by Russian special forces. The Vanguard says that Abuja has turned to Moscow following an “alleged snub or nonchalant attitude of the United States and the United Kingdom toward Nigeria in her fight against Boko Haram terrorists.” Read more »

This is a guest post by Allen Grane, research associate for the Council on Foreign Relations Africa Studies program.

On October 17, Suni, a northern white rhino, was found dead in his enclosure at Old Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya. Suni who died of natural causes was one of only two breeding males left of his subspecies. He was born in the Czech Republic, and at thirty-four he was the youngest male northern white rhino. Read more »

Below is a visualization and description of some of the most significant incidents of political violence in Nigeria from October 18 to October 24, 2014. These incidents will be included in the Nigeria Security Tracker.
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This is a guest post by Jim Sanders, a career, now retired, West Africa watcher for various federal agencies. The views expressed below are his personal views and do not reflect those of his former employers. Read more »

I have written before about New York’s City’s African-born population. Here, I want to call attention to the current wave of African immigration to the United States. Read more »

This is a guest post by Thomas Zuber, intern for the Council on Foreign Relations Africa Studies program. He is currently pursuing a Master’s in International Political Economy and Development at Fordham University. 

The Ebola crisis in West Africa has distracted international attention from developments in other parts of Africa, notably in the Central African Republic (CAR). On September 15, the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Central African Republic (MINUSCA) initiated peacekeeping operations in a country divided by civil war. It began working alongside two thousand French soldiers already on the ground and is integrating African Union troops into what will be a twelve thousand strong peacekeeping mission. Read more »

Ebola and Marburg are both hemorrhagic fevers and belong to the same family of viruses. The hosts for both are identified as animals, especially fruit bats—both diseases cross over from animals to humans. Incubation periods are around twenty-one days. The two diseases have similar symptoms and similarly high mortality rates. Both diseases spread through contact with bodily fluids, making family members and health care workers especially vulnerable. There is no pharmaceutical that cures either disease, and patients are treated in much the same way. The ill are isolated and medically supported until they recover or die. Efforts must be made to trace all those who came into contact with the ill. Read more »

Below is a visualization and description of some of the most significant incidents of political violence in Nigeria from October 11 to October 17, 2014. These incidents will be included in the Nigeria Security Tracker.
Read more »

This is a guest post by Cheryl Strauss Einhorn, a journalist and adjunct professor at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Last week, two “firsts” occurred in Africa: Read more »

Paul Biya, the president of Cameroon, announced on October 12 that twenty-seven kidnap victims have been freed and turned over to the Cameroonian authorities. The victims were kidnapped on May 16 and July 27. They included ten Chinese workers, the wife of Cameroon’s vice-prime minister, and the Lamido of Kolofata, a traditional Cameroonian ruler. Read more »