Iran Tracker

Tension in West Africa and the Maghreb have not achieved the level of attention typically given to security issues in the Middle East, South Asia, or the Horn of Africa. However, one of three of al Qaeda's official franchises - al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) - is based in the region. AQIM has maintained an active insurgency against the Algerian government while kidnapping scores of foreigners throughout the Western Sahel. Further to the south, violence between Christian and Muslim populations in northern Nigeria continues to flare up, while separatists in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria continue to engage in violence.

This section includes daily news roundups and analysis of those issues.