Sahara

Has the Saudi-Iran rivalry reached the Western Sahara region?

Morocco has announced it is cutting ties with Iran, accusing Tehran of weaponising the Polisario Front, an independence movement that has clashed with Rabat for ​Western Sahara for the past four decades.

Suspected militants kill at least 40 Tuaregs in Mali - official

Mostly young men were killed in two attacks in northern Menaka region, which seem calculated to spark an ethnic conflict between Tuareg and Fulani herders, governor Daouda Maiga says.

Morocco issues warning over UN buffer zones in Western Sahara

The Morrocan government warned the UN peacekeeping mission for Western Sahara of Polisario Front independence fighters moving into UN-controlled areas but a UN spokesman said the mission has "not observed any movement".

Al Qaeda-linked group claims responsibility for Burkina Faso attack

Friday's attacks in Ouagadougou on the French embassy and the country's military HQ left 12 people seriously injured while eight assailants were killed, along with the soldiers. A Mali-based affiliate of al Qaeda claimed responsibility.

Equatorial Guinea thwarts "coup" attempt against Obiang's rule

Officials say the country defeated a coup bid by foreign mercenaries against President Teodoro Obiang Nguema, Africa's longest-serving leader.

Gunmen kill 13 Niger gendarmes in attack near Mali border

The incident took place in a village which is a few dozen kilometres from where militants killed four US soldiers in an ambush on October 4.

Over 40 migrants reported dead in Sahara after truck breakdown

Six survivors walked to a remote village where they said that 44 people, mostly from Ghana and Nigeria and including three babies and two other children, died of dehydration, according to the department head for the Red Cross in the Bilma region.

Timeline: A brief history of the Western Sahara

Morocco, one of Africa's largest economies, was admitted into the African Union (AU) this month, 33 years after it first quit the organisation. And all because of the Western Sahara.

Morocco rejoins African Union after 33 years

The nation had left after the bloc recognised Western Sahara as a sovereign territory in 1984.

Was 2016 a bleak year for Africa?

Plagued by drought, famine, terrorist attacks and political shocks, the continent has faced many challenges in 2016.

How Morocco's argan trees help fight the growing desert

There is an expanding international demand for argan oil, an organic healthcare product made from the fruit of Morocco's native argan tree. But how are these plants tied to the country's battle against the growing Sahara desert?

Morocco to rejoin AU, offers autonomy to disputed territory

Morocco left the African Union in 1984 over the territorial dispute for the Western Sahara region, but now it seeks readmission.