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Libya's Largest Refinery Is on Fire. Nobody Knows Who Did It. That Is the Real Problem.

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Footage verified by Al Jazeera showed huge flames and thick black smoke billowing over the Zawiya oil refinery, the largest operating refinery in Libya with a refining capacity of 120,000 barrels per day, located about 40 kilometres west of the capital Tripoli. Firefighters battled through the night on Monday and were still working to extinguish the blaze by Tuesday afternoon. No casualties were reported. And no group has claimed responsibility. That last fact is the most telling detail in the entire story. A fire in a storage tank burns as firefighters work to control the blaze, at an oil refinery in Zawiya, Libya August 10, 2026. Three Attacks in Three Days The National Oil Corporation said the fire broke out on Monday evening at tank number 402-T, belonging to the Brega Oil Company. The tank, which contained about 4.5 million litres of gasoline, was directly targeted, resulting in a severe fire before the tank completely collapsed. The NOC said the attack followed drone strikes on a...
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The Children Dying in Sudan Are Paying for a Geopolitical Competition They Know Nothing About

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One child was treated for severe acute malnutrition every six minutes in North Darfur alone. Eight children killed in a single drone strike in North Kordofan. Seventeen million children out of school. These are not statistics from a natural disaster. They are the measurable human cost of a geopolitical competition between Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt that has turned Sudan into a proxy battlefield. A view of destruction in a livestock market area in al-Fasher, the capital of Sudan's North Darfur state on Sept. 1, 2023. The Trap These Four Countries Built ImArabic's August 2026 analysis drew the conclusion that no individual actor or Western outlet has stated more plainly: the interventions of Turkey, Qatar, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia in Sudan have evolved into a geopolitical trap that has tightened around the Sudanese state and its people . These interventions were not driven by a genuine desire to establish peace or build a stable democratic state. They were shaped by ca...
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More Than 300 Abducted Nigerians Rescued in Country's Largest Single-Day Security Operation

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More than 300 people abducted in separate attacks in Nigeria have been rescued, the country's presidency says , describing it as the largest single-day rescue operation ever carried out by the country's joint security forces. Homes that were burned stand in ruins days after an attack in the village of Woro, Nigeria, February 5, 2026.  How the Rescue Unfolded The 308 victims were freed from the Kainji Lake National Park Forest in the New Bussa Local Government Area of Niger State, in an operation involving the Nigerian armed forces, police, the Department of State Services, and the National Counter-Terrorism Centre . Presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga said President Bola Tinubu warmly welcomed the successful rescue of the citizens, who had been abducted in different attacks across Niger and Kwara states. Details of how the operation was carried out were not disclosed, with officials saying only that the victims were rescued from a forest and are now receiving medical attentio...
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Puntland Signs New Security Deal With US, Allowing AFRICOM to Expand Bosaso Base

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Puntland and the United States signed a new security cooperation agreement Sunday, August 3, 2026, following a meeting in Bosaso between Puntland President Said Abdullahi Deni and a delegation from US Africa Command led by Major General Claude Tudor, allowing Washington to expand its military facility in the port city to support counterterrorism operations and strengthen maritime security across the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. In my opinion, this is one of the more consequential security agreements to come out of the Horn of Africa in recent years, even if the official statement is deliberately modest about what it actually involves. The U.S Ambassador to Somalia Justin Davis met Puntland President Said Abdullahi Deni in Garowe back in may 21, 2026. What the Agreement Covers According to a statement from the Puntland presidency, the agreement expands cooperation between the two sides and formally authorizes the US to enlarge its existing facility in Bosaso. The statement did not specif...
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Five Kenyan Security Officers Killed in Al-Shabaab IED Attack Near Somalia Border

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Five Kenyan security officers, including four members of the elite Special Operations Group, were killed Tuesday, July 28, 2026, after their patrol vehicle struck an improvised explosive device in Mandera County, in what officials describe as part of a rapid surge in cross-border attacks along Kenya's northern frontier . Members of the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) deployed to the border at undislcosed time. How the Attack Unfolded The explosion struck in the El-Raamo area of Kutulo, along the Alungu Main Supply Route, a road frequently used by security forces near the Kenya-Somalia border. Police said a patrol team from SOG Alungu came into contact with al-Shabaab militants in the general area of Wantey Dam around noon on Tuesday . The blast destroyed the patrol vehicle, killing four Special Operations Group officers and a Kenya Police Reservist. Moments after the explosion, suspected militants opened fire, triggering a gun battle before the attackers escaped toward the border. A R...
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Hundreds Protest in Vogan, Togo, Demanding Return to Previous Constitution

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Hundreds of people gathered Saturday in Vogan, a town roughly 60 kilometers south of Lomé, to protest against Togo's 2024 constitutional reform , which opposition groups and civil society organizations call an illegal power grab by President Faure Gnassingbé. People protest against Togo's longtime leader, Faure Gnassingbe, in Lome, Togo June 26, 2025. What Happened in Vogan The rally, organized by opposition parties and civil society groups including the Cadre national de concertation pour le changement, opened with a traditional libation ceremony before opposition leaders joined supporters in singing Togo's national anthem. The gathering drew participation from prominent figures, among them lawyer Dodji Apévon, activist Eric Dupuy, and professors Aimé Gogué and David Dosseh . David Dosseh, spokesperson for the civil society group Front Citoyen Togo Debout, called the 2024 changes completely illegal, describing them as a constitutional coup that Togolese people will never...
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South Africa's Inflation Hits Two-Year High as Fuel Costs Surge Amid Middle East Tensions

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CAPE TOWN-South Africa's annual consumer inflation accelerated to 5.0% in June 2026, up from 4.5% in May, marking the highest reading since June 2024 . In my opinion, this number is a fairly clean illustration of how little control a country like South Africa actually has over its own cost of living. A woman uses a trolley as she shops at a Pick n Pay store at the Dobson Point Shopping Centre, in Soweto, South Africa, March 19, 2024.  Fuel Is Doing Most of the Damage Statistics South Africa said transport was by far the biggest driver of the increase, with the annual transport inflation rate accelerating to 12.7% in June from 9.4% in May. Fuel prices themselves climbed 34.3% over the past year, driven by a 50.8% jump in diesel prices and a 31.7% rise in petrol prices . From my perspective, that surge into passenger transport inflation, up 8.1% in June alone, is the part of this story that matters most, since minibus taxi fares jumped 11.5% and that's the mode of transport mos...
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