Vol 67 No 16 | CONGO-KINSHASA Turkish drones suspected in Kivus 7th August 2026 Officials in Kinshasa have doubled down on claims that drones manufactured in Turkey, China and elsewhere have been used by Rwanda and the M23 militia group to launch...
Vol 67 No 15 | CAMEROON Biya’s Geneva stay sharpens succession risk 15th July 2026 The president’s absence has held-up decisions in Yaoundé, triggering concerns over the un-named vice-president and a political rupture President Paul Biya has been stuck in Geneva, Switzerland, for a month – alternating between a private clinic and his favoured suite at the InterContinental Hotel. This follows...
Vol 67 No 13 | RWANDACONGO-KINSHASACHINA Beijing is selling arms to both sides in the Congo war 17th June 2026 Weapons sold to Kigali are reaching M23 rebels, angering Kinshasa officials and threatening China’s mining interests Officials in President Félix Tshisekedi’s government are increasingly frustrated by the flow of sophisticated Chinese-made weapons sold to Rwanda, then handed over to the Mouvement du 23 Mars...
Vol 67 No 12 | CONGO-KINSHASA Tshisekedi tests opinion with third-term kite 12th June 2026 The President’s hints at ending term limits and delaying the 2028 polls unsettle investors wary of conflict in Africa’s biggest copper producer Congolese voters have been presented with a fait accompli but their acquiescence is not guaranteed. President Felix Tshisekedi, who is midway through his second term, says the rebel...
Vol 67 No 7 | CONGO-KINSHASA Tshisekedi purge ahead of term limit test 3rd April 2026 With the Senate’s last dissident sidelined and the US focused on minerals, Tshisekedi’s third-term bid is advancing When Modeste Bahati Lukwebo was hustled from the Senate Vice-Presidency on 18 March, accused of fiscal fraud tied to a brewery in Kivu-Sud, few in Kinshasa’s political class...
Vol 67 No 7 | CONGO-KINSHASA Belgium in the dock for Lumumba killing 3rd April 2026 The Brussels Court of First Instance’s referral of Count Étienne Davignon, a former European Commissioner, for trial on charges relating to the assassination of Congo-Kinshasa’s first Prime Minister...
Vol 67 No 7 | CONGO-KINSHASAUNITED STATES The Americans are buying 3rd April 2026 Central Intelligence Agency veterans and Green Berets are buying Congolese assets under a pact with Washington – a logic that also explains why the United States is unlikely...
Vol 67 No 6 | CONGO-BRAZZAVILLE Sassou keeps it Soviet 20th March 2026 Official results declared Denis Sassou-Nguesso re-elected for a fifth successive term with 94.82% of the 15 March first round presidential vote, purportedly on an 84.65% turnout. But it’s...
Vol 67 No 6 | MOZAMBIQUERWANDACONGO-KINSHASAEUROPEAN UNION Kigali threatens to stop guarding gas project in Cabo Delgado 18th March 2026 Targeted by EU and US sanctions, Rwanda says it won’t protect western assets in Mozambique without new funding Neither side has blinked yet in the poker game between Rwandan officials and their counterparts in the United States and the European Union. A flurry of meetings...
Vol 67 No 5 | RWANDACONGO-KINSHASAUNITED STATES More pressure on Kigali 6th March 2026 President Félix Tshisekedi’s government is pressing its diplomatic advantage after the US State Department sanctioned the Rwandan Defence Force (RDF) and four of its senior commanders for their...
Vol 67 No 4 | CAMEROON Biya’s grip falters as barons fight over a port contract 13th February 2026 Infirmity is catching up with the President – 93 on Friday the 13th – with would-be successors battling over the spoils of office The most convincing sign that President Paul Biya’s powers are waning is his inability to restrain ministers and close aides openly feuding over lucrative contracts. This would have...
Vol 67 No 1 | CHADCENTRAL AFRICAAFRICA IN 2026 Mahamat needs more than cash to keep control 9th January 2026 The opposition doesn’t present half the threat to the president that his fractious allies do The inner circle around President Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno ‘Kaka’ is in turmoil, especially since the fall of El Fasher, the capital of the Sudanese province of Darfur,...
Vol 67 No 1 | CONGO-KINSHASACENTRAL AFRICAAFRICA IN 2026 Kigali stand-off continues as Copperbelt booms 9th January 2026 The lack of enforcement mechanisms means no one is pressured to respect the US and Qatari accords In the opening days of 2026, the latest UN experts’ report confirmed the widely held view that the war aims of the Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) and its...
Vol 67 No 1 | CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLICCENTRAL AFRICAAFRICA IN 2026 Touadéra has to keep the cash flowing 9th January 2026 The President looks secure but peace is expensive, and with Russians in retreat there are high hopes the UAE can ride to the rescue President Faustin-Archange Touadéra’s overwhelming, and fraudulent, win at the polls in December which gave him a third term, showcases two current trends in Africa: one, the skills in...
