Monthly Review March 2025

This monthly press review covers Eurafrican migration control, migration and displacement in African countries and news on the European border regime.

Also see Migreurop Press Review February 2025

USA / USAID

31.03.24 NYT: U.S. Has Spent $40 Million to Jail About 400 Migrants at Guantánamo: The Senate delegation on Friday toured Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities where about 85 migrants were being held, including in a prison that for years housed wartime detainees linked to Al Qaeda.
The senators also spoke with officials from the Defense and Homeland Security Departments. About 1,000 government employees, mostly from the military, are staffing the migrant operation. The administration has sent fewer than 400 men, at least half of them Venezuelans, to the base since February as part of President Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration.

30.03.25 Dsp: Hunderte Gaststudierende zur Ausreise aus den USA aufgefordert: Visum storniert, Abschiebung angedroht: In den USA wurde einem Medienbericht zufolge von Hunderten Studierenden ohne US-Pass verlangt, das Land zu verlassen. Sie sollen unter anderem kritische Posts geteilt haben.

26.03.25 NYT: U.S. to End Vaccine Funds for Poor Countries: A 281-page spreadsheet obtained by The Times lists the Trump administration’s plans for thousands of foreign aid programs. The cover letter details the skeletal remains of U.S.A.I.D. after the cuts, with most of its funding eliminated, and only 869 of more than 6,000 employees still on active duty.
In all, the administration has decided to continue 898 U.S.A.I.D. awards and to end 5,341, the letter says. It says the remaining programs are worth up to $78 billion. But only $8.3 billion of that is unobligated funds — money still available to disburse.
The administration has decided to continue some key grants for medications to treat H.I.V. and tuberculosis, and food aid to countries facing civil wars and natural disasters.

25.03.25 THN: Humanitarian data drought: The deeper damage wrought by US aid cuts: From household health surveys on the ground to satellite images taken from space, the vast information networks that inform the humanitarian system are teetering on the brink of “collapse” as a result of the US government budget cuts.

Also see AJE 10.03.25: Rubio announces 83 percent of USAID contracts cancelled under Trump: “The 5,200 contracts that are now cancelled spent tens of billions of dollars in ways that did not serve, (and in some cases even harmed), the core national interests of the United States,” Rubio wrote in a post on the social media platform X.

Also see AJE 03.03.25: Why some in the Global South are not mourning the demise of USAID: The aid industry has always propped up imperial domination. Its implosion may be an opportunity to shape a new order.

22.03.25 AJE: Trump revokes legal status for 530,000 immigrants in the US: Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans could face deportation from April 24.

17.03.24 taz: Abgeschoben und ausgeliefert: US-Präsident Trump ordnet die Deportation mutmaßlicher Gangmitglieder nach El Salvador an. Er setzt sich damit über ein Bundesgericht hinweg. „Ooopsie, zu spät!“ schrieb am Sonntagfrüh El Salvadors Präsident Nayyib Bukele auf X zur Entscheidung des Richters und postete wenig später ein Video von der Ankunft der 238 Männer in El Salvador und ihrer Überstellung in das berüchtigte Gefängnis CECOT, das für bis zu 40.000 Insassen ausgelegt ist. Das Video zeigt, wie die Männer gedemütigt werden: wie sie gebeugt und von vermummten Einsatzkräften an den Haaren gezogen und anschließend kahlrasiert werden.

12.03.25 NYT: Justice Dept. Opens Investigation Into Migrant Shelters in New York: Prosecutors asked for a list of names of “aliens” living at a Manhattan hotel. The city houses about 43,000 migrants in shelters, including dozens of converted hotels.

All Africa

24.03.25 taz: Politische Krisen in Afrika: Ein Staat, zwei Regierungen: In immer mehr Ländern Afrikas beanspruchen mehrere Machthaber die politische Legitimität. Wie kann der Teufelskreis durchbrochen werden? Was alle genannten Länder eint, ist das Nebeneinander zweier Machtzentren in einem einzigen Staat, den sie aber jeweils für sich ganz alleine haben wollen. Anders als in Mosambik und ­Sudan haben die Kontrahenten in Äthiopien, in der DR Kongo und in Südsudan zwar noch keine formelle Gegenregierung gebildet, aber der Trend ist klar: ein Staat, mehrere rivalisierende Regierungsapparate.

21.03.25 AJE: Migrant deaths hit record number in 2024, UN agency says: Nearly 9,000 people died last year trying to cross borders, the United Nations agency for migration says.
The death toll set a new grim record for the fifth year in a row. The number of deaths on migratory routes has more than doubled since 2020.

17.03.25 Africa Report: Trump’s travel ban: Over half the countries on the list are in Africa: Following President Donald Trump‘s 20 January executive order requiring intensified security vetting of foreigners seeking entry into the US, his administration is gearing up to issue a series of travel restrictions for the citizens of 43 countries across the world – including 22 African nations. Under the red list, whose citizens face a complete ban, three African countries – Libya, Somalia and Sudan – are grouped alongside eight others including North Korea, Iran, Syria and Cuba.
On the orange list, whose citizens would face additional travel restrictions instead of a complete ban, Eritrea, Sierra Leone and South Sudan join Belarus, Pakistan, Russia and four others.

10.03.25 Guardian: Drone attacks killing hundreds of civilians across Africa, says report: Almost 1,000 civilians have been killed and hundreds more injured in military drone attacks across Africa as the proliferation of unmanned aerial vehicles continues unchecked on the continent, according to a report.
At least 50 separate deadly strikes by armed forces in Africa have been confirmed during the three years up to November 2024, with analysts describing a “striking pattern of civilian harm” with little or no accountability.

Also se ECFR 28.02.25: Deadly skies: Drone warfare in Ethiopia and the future of conflict in Africa: The use of military drones is spreading across Africa, further destabilising countries facing deep tensions between typically authoritarian governments and rebel groups. While these governments have frequently pursued violence over dialogue in the past, the increasing availability of drones makes the military option seem cheaper and easier.

09.03.25 Guardian: Internet shutdowns at record high in Africa as access ‘weaponised’: A report released by the internet rights group Access Now and #KeepItOn, a coalition of hundreds of civil society organisations worldwide, found there were 21 shutdowns in 15 African countries, surpassing the existing record of 19 shutdowns in 2020 and 2021.
Authorities in Comoros, Guinea-Bissau and Mauritius joined repeat offenders such as Burundi, Ethiopia, Equatorial Guinea and Kenya. Guinea, Nigeria, Senegal and Tanzania were also on the list. But perpetrators also included militias and other non-state actors.

North Africa

Egypt

26.03.25 Infomigrants: UNHCR suspends nearly all programs in Egypt following budget cuts: The UNHCR says it has been forced to suspend its programs in Egypt due to serious budget cuts. The measures will mostly affect people who rely on the UN body for vital healthcare needs, in particular those fleeing the war in Sudan.
The UN refugees agency in Egypt (UNHCR) has said it has received less than half of its 135 million dollar (around 125 million euros) budget to help nearly one million registered refugees and asylum seekers from 60 countries residing in Egypt this year.

Libya

19.03.25 taz: Milizionäre jagen Migranten: Libyen verhaftet derzeit vermehrt Migranten aus West- und Zentralafrika, mit dem Ziel, sie aus dem Land abzuschieben. Ein Video zeigt etwa, wie wohl mehr als 1.200 Menschen von schwer bewaffneten Milizionären auf das umzäunte Gelände des Flughafen Maitiga nahe der Hauptstadt Tripolis geführt werden. Die in dem Video Abgeführten hatten zuvor dort gearbeitet: auf Baustellen, in Restaurants oder Tankstellen.

Tunisia

27.03.25 Infomigrants: Tunisie : des centaines de migrants interceptés en mer disparaissent des radars: Des centaines de migrants ont été abandonnés dans le désert, à la frontière algérienne et libyenne, après avoir été interceptés en mer par les forces tunisiennes, le 17 mars. Ce genre d’expulsion est courante en Tunisie depuis l’été 2023, mais celle-ci impressionne par son ampleur. Certaines sources évoquent un nombre total de 600 exilés lâchés au même moment dans des zones désertiques.

24.03.25 Infomigrants: NGO reports over 600 migrants deported to Tunisian desert: The Mediterranea Saving Humans NGO has said it was contacted by a man part of a large group of migrants abandoned along Tunisia's western border.
"The people were abandoned along Tunisia's western border, in inaccessible and isolated areas in the Haidra and Djebel Ghorra areas, without any form of subsistence a few kilometers from the Algerian border."

04.03.25 AJE: ‘A mockery’: Mass trial begins in Tunisia of political opponents: Human rights groups denounce trials as further evidence of a crackdown on opposition by President Kais Saied.

East Africa

Ethiopia

14.03.25 Africa Report: Ethiopia: Why fear of a return to full conflict is growing in Tigray: Tigray Defence Forces have seized control of several major towns in the region, laying bare the fragility of a truce with the Ethiopian government.

Also see taz 12.03.25: Tigray fällt zurück in den Krieg; 04.03.25 TNH: A power struggle in Tigray risks Ethiopia’s peace deal

South Sudan

17.03.24 taz: Uganda schickt wieder Truppen in den Südsudan: Ugandas nördlicher Nachbar Südsudan steckt wieder einmal in einer internen Machtkrise. Schon 2013 und 2015 hatte Uganda jeweils Spezialeinheiten nach Juba entsandt, als dort Bürgerkrieg herrschte. 2016 schickte Uganda erneut Soldaten. Ihre Hauptaufgabe war vor allem, die Straße zwischen der ugandischen Grenze und Juba zu sichern, damit Lastwagen sicher passieren können, die Waren aus Uganda liefern. Dabei handelt es sich meist um ugandische Lkws. Südsudan ist Haupt-Importland für ugandische Agrarprodukte.

Sudan

27.03.25 TNH: An RSF atrocity, a mass evacuation, and another side to mutual aid in Sudan: By end of 2024, Local volunteers – best known for running communal soup kitchens – had formed neighbourhood-based emergency response rooms and other types of mutual aid collectives across Sudan at the outset of the war, stepping in as international aid groups faltered under access restrictions and mounting insecurity.
Now, the emergency response rooms in Al Jazirah were taking these efforts even further, bringing civilians out of a devastated state as the RSF was committing one of its worst atrocities to date.

25.03.25 NYT: Sudan Military Bombing Kills Dozens in Attack on Market in Darfur: Videos and photographs from the aftermath of the strike in Toura, a small town in North Darfur, showed dozens of charred bodies and partial human remains strewed across a smoldering expanse in a town market.

23.03.25 NYT: Sudan’s Military Sweeps Across Capital, Hoping to Turn the War: Since Sudan’s military captured the presidential palace on Friday, in a fierce battle that left hundreds dead, it has taken control of most of central Khartoum, marking a momentous change of fortunes that is likely to change the course of Sudan’s ruinous civil war. By Sunday, the military had seized the Central Bank, the headquarters of the national intelligence service and the towering Corinthia Hotel along the Nile.

Also see NYT 26.03.25: Paramilitary Fighters Flee Sudan’s Capital, a Major Shift in Civil War

23.03.25 Guardian: Atrocities mount daily. Promised aid does not arrive. Why has the west turned its back on Sudan?: Statistics are not cutting through. As Africa’s third-largest country implodes, the west looks away. “International donors are fiddling as Sudan burns,” says a senior UN official. This is not donor apathy, but a tale of outrageous chicanery; of high-profile global announcements that were always untrue. At least £500m promised by the west 12 months ago to help Sudan cope with its suffering has not been paid.
Also see NYT 18.03.25: U.S. Foreign Aid Cuts Hit Sudanese Refugees Fleeing Violence and Famine in Darfur; AJE 05.03.25: Sudanese starve as soup kitchens close and warring parties block aid: The United States’ decision to suspend foreign aid is exacerbating a catastrophic hunger crisis in Sudan, where millions risk dying from malnutrition-related illnesses.

07.03.25 Guardian: Evidence of torture found as detention centre and mass grave discovered outside Khartoum: More than 500 people may have been tortured or starved to death and then buried in a secret mass grave north of Khartoum, according to evidence seen by the Guardian.

07.03.25 Washington Post: A Turkish arms firm helped fuel Sudan’s brutal civil war, records show: The secret shipment of Turkish drones and missiles had just been delivered to the Sudanese army in September, and a team from Baykar — Turkey’s largest defense company — was on the ground to make sure the deal went smoothly.

06.03.25 NYT: Sudan Accuses U.A.E. of Being Complicit in Genocide: In an International Court of Justice complaint, the Sudanese government says the United Arab Emirates is fueling genocidal actions by funding rebels in the country’s civil war.

Also see AJE 06.03.25: UAE denies Sudan’s accusations of ‘complicity in genocide’ at the ICJ

06.03.25 AJE: Peacemaker or peacebreaker? Why Kenya’s good neighbour reputation is marred: “These clear positions affirm the Kenyan Presidency’s irresponsible stance in embracing the genocidal RSF militia,” the SAF-led government said in a statement on Sunday, adding that Kenya was a “rogue state”.
The RSF’s signing of the “Sudan Founding Charter” last month in effect paves the way for a parallel government in RSF-held territories, including in parts of the capital, Khartoum, and the western region of Darfur.

Also see taz 05.03.25: Zwei Armeen und zwei Regierungen: Nach ihren jüngsten militärischen Rückschlägen will die aufständische RSF eine eigene Regierung gründen. Teile der zivilen Opposition sind dabei.

West Africa and Sahel

March 25 Clingendael: ECHOES OF THE SAHEL - A special issue newsletter focusing on resource sovereignty in the Sahel: Across the Sahel, a new wave of resource sovereigntism is reshaping the extractive sector. Military-led governments in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger assert greater control over natural wealth in pursuit of economic sovereignty.

27.03.25 ACLED: New frontlines: Jihadist expansion is reshaping the Benin, Niger, and Nigeria borderlands: ACLED data show that JNIM and ISSP have entered a new phase of expansion, and their growing influence in the border regions between Niger, Nigeria, and Benin is part of a broader regional trend of jihadist expansion, and consequently, a larger proportion of the civilian population being exposed to conflict.

25.03.25 Aftica Report: Israel‑Hezbollah: Cocaine, diamonds, money laundering… Africa’s hidden war: Mossad and the Lebanese Shia terror group have turned the continent into their covert battleground, locked in a conflict that has simmered out of sight for years. From Douala to Abidjan, through Bangui and Libreville, we uncover a clandestine world of spies and traffickers. [PW]

18.03.25 JA: Les Peuls et le jihad au Sahel : des amalgames dangereux: Pour restaurer un semblant d’ordre dans cette partie de l’Afrique de l’Ouest, les États devront développer une compréhension plus subtile des conflits, qui ne se résument pas à une insurrection d’éleveurs.

17.03.25 ISS: Lake Chad Basin insurgents raise the stakes with weaponised drones: ISWAP’s enhanced operations and use of drone attacks represent a turning point for counter-terrorism in the region.

15.03.25 Tagesspiegel: Mit Barren im Handgepäck von Bamako nach Dubai: Wie Trumps Strafzölle den Goldrausch in Afrika antreiben: Vom Senegal bis zum Tschad entstehen neue Siedlungen mit Gruben und Schächten, wo Menschen mit Schaufeln und den bloßen Händen nach Gold suchen.

12.03.25 VoA: ECOWAS regional bloc activates counterterror force: With almost all the ECOWAS countries facing internal security challenges, observers are watching to see whether the regional force can shift the status quo amid strained cooperation.

13.03.25 MMC: The role of smuggling in shaping migrants’ journeys, finances and risks in the Central Sahel: This paper looks at the role of smugglers in facilitating migrant movement amid the worsening political and security situation in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. Findings reveal that migrants rely on smugglers to bypass occasional border restrictions between members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and to navigate increasingly dangerous routes within Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger—three countries that formed the Alliance of Sahel States (ASS) in 2023.

06.03.25 The Conversation: Sécurité au Sahel : pourquoi le Mali, le Burkina faso et le Niger misent sur une force commune: La création d’une armée commune par le Burkina Faso, le Mali et le Niger représenterait une avancée stratégique majeure dans la lutte contre l’insécurité et le terrorisme. Cette initiative vise à renforcer la coordination et à favoriser une approche plus autonome et adaptée aux réalités du Sahel central.

Also see JA 08.03.25: Sahel : enlèvements et disparitions forcées, la stratégie commune des juntes et des jihadistes; BBC 05.03.25: The region with more 'terror deaths' than rest of world combined

Burkina Faso

15.03.35 AP: Video of Burkina Faso massacre appears to implicate government-allied militia, watchdog says: According to testimonies collected by the watchdog, security forces and allied militias carried out large-scale operations in the Solenzo countryside on Monday and Tuesday, and targeted displaced Fulani in apparent retaliatory attacks against the community, which the government has long accused of supporting Muslim militants. “The gruesome videos of an apparent massacre by pro-government militias in Burkina Faso underscore the pervasive lack of accountability of these forces,”

15.03.25 defence post: Burkina Junta Creates New Battalions to Fight Jihadists: “More than 14,000 soldiers of all types and thousands of (civilian defense force volunteers) have been recruited, trained, and equipped,” he added. The rapid intervention battalions (BIR) and civilian defense volunteers (VDP) have been accused multiple times of abuses against civilians, including earlier this week in western Burkina Faso.
The years of violence have forced more than two million people to flee their homes, according to the last available UN refugee agency figures from March 2023.
But Ouedraogo said more than one million of the internally displaced have now been resettled in nearly 700 localities. He also said that more than two-thirds (71 percent) of land occupied by armed groups had been recaptured. AFP could not independently confirm that figure.

08.03.25 RFI: Burkina Faso: les syndicats déçus après une réunion avec le gouvernement: Les responsables syndicaux déplorent le fait qu’aucune réponse n’a été apportée par le gouvernement. Ils appellent alors leurs militants à se réunir et à définir les futures actions dans le cadre de la satisfaction de leurs doléances.

07.03.25 DW: Les femmes du Sahel sont prises entre deux feux: 80 % de ces personnes déplacées internes sont des femmes et des enfants.
Leur précarité les rend plus vulnérables - notamment aux violences sexuelles. Aminata Ba explique que, pourtant, les femmes devraient être davantage impliquées dans les initiatives de paix.

03.03.25 CFR: Prince of the Sahel: Burkinabe dictator, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, is the dashing poster boy for military rule in the West African Sahel. […] It is telling that the bulk of the support for Traoré and his brothers in arms in Guinea, Mali, and Niger comes from young people understandably put off by the chronic larceny of the political leadership and, as they see it, the ponderousness of liberal democracy. […] They will find out soon enough that Traoré is just the latest in a long line of martial impostors. Beneath the populist swagger and ideological posturing, beneath the ostentatious austerity and love of parade is a cold, calculating, and implacable lust for power.

Mali

25.03.25 AfricaNews: Progress in solar power expansion in Mali amidst significant challenges: In response to the persistent outages from EDM, which primarily relies on generators and diesel, innovative ideas for mini solar power plants are starting to take root in Mali's more isolated villages, which are largely untouched by the armed groups opposing the military government.

24.03.25 AJE: ‘Callous’: Are Malian troops and Russian mercenaries attacking civilians?: Conflict monitors say Wagner fighters have intensified combat and widened their operation areas since 2023.

18.03.25 AfricaNews: Army airstrike on a market kills 18 in Mali: Mali’s army said on X it carried out airstrikes on a “refuge” in the area and killed 11 “terrorists.”

07.03.25 AfricaNews: Mali suspends artisanal gold mining permits for foreign companies after series of accidents: Artisanal gold mining is estimated to produce around 30 tons of gold a year and represents 6% of Mali’s annual gold production. The Council of Ministers' statement said measures would be taken to facilitate the recovery of equipment used in gold panning and its addition to the national patrimony. This is a major change, as previously mining companies could recover their equipment after paying a fine to the country’s authorities. “These measures are designed to further strengthen the state authorities and protect our fellow citizens. These measures give us the power to seize materials (mining equipment), which will be confiscated and placed in the domain of national heritage,”

07.03.25 RFI: Mali: les nouvelles taxes téléphoniques abonderont un «Fonds de soutien» opaque à la présidence: Au Mali, les nouvelles taxes annoncées le mois dernier sur l'achat de crédit téléphonique – 10% de taxe – et les services de transaction par mobile money – 1% – sont entrées en vigueur ce mercredi 5 mars. Concrètement, sur une carte de 1 000 francs CFA, cela fait 100 francs de crédit téléphonique en moins. Ces taxes financeront un Fonds de soutien spécial pour des projets d'infrastructure et de développement, notamment dans l'énergie. Mais le décret présidentiel précisant les modalités d'organisation et de gestion de ce nouveau Fonds, qui figure au Journal officiel daté du 21 février, mais qui ne circule que depuis ce jeudi, met en place une gestion opaque relevant directement de la présidence.

Also see DW: En Afrique, ces fonds de solidarité pas toujours solidaires

05.03.25 AfricaReport: Will lithium be Mali’s new goose that lays the golden eggs?: Mali has just launched West Africa’s first two lithium mines, a sector the government is betting on despite falling prices.

Mauritania

24.03.25 ND: EU liefert weiteres Patrouillenboot an Mauretanien: Der Rat der Europäischen Union hat am Montag erneut eine Finanzspritze für das mauretanische Militär beschlossen: 20 Millionen Euro fließen in mobile Landüberwachungsanlagen und ein weiteres Patrouillenboot. Damit steigt die Unterstützung für die Regierung in Nouakchott unter der »Europäischen Friedensfazilität« (EPF) auf insgesamt 47 Millionen Euro. Offiziell heißt es, die Maßnahmen dienten der Stabilität in der Sahelzone und der Bekämpfung von Bedrohungen für die territoriale Integrität des Landes. Gemeint ist womöglich auch die Bewachung eines Offshore-Gasfelds an der Seegrenze zum Senegal im Atlantischen Ozean. Jedoch könnten die Mittel auch zur Migrationsabwehr im Sinne der EU genutzt werden.

13.03.25 DW: Expulsions de migrants irréguliers, Nouakchott réagit: Dans un entretien accordé à la DW, le chef de la diplomatie mauritanienne est revenu sur la récente reconduite aux frontières de migrants en situation irrégulière.

Also see LM 26.03.25: La Mauritanie, désormais l’un des principaux points de départ vers l’Europe, expulse des centaines de migrants sous la pression de l’UE; MediaFrica 10.03.25: Mauritania: Migrants Clash with Police Amid Expulsion Campaign: On Saturday, migrants who were in the process of being deported to Mali targeted a police post in Gogui, a border area between the two countries. According to security sources, the migrants first hurled stones at the police station before setting it alight. The incident comes as part of a larger campaign against irregular migration, which has seen a significant increase in arrests and expulsions in recent days; Infomigrants 05.03.25: Mauritanie : des centaines de migrants en situation irrégulière arrêtés et placés en rétention: Depuis quelques jours, des centaines de ressortissants maliens, guinéens, sénégalais et ivoiriens en situation irrégulière ont été interpellés et placés dans un centre de rétention de Nouakchott, en vue de leur expulsion. Seuls une dizaine d'exilés, des Sénégalais, ont pour l'instant été rapatriés.

Niger

01.04.25 Guardian: Niger’s junta withdraws from Lake Chad anti-Islamist force: The decision to exit the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) was announced in a bulletin on state television over the weekend. The move “reflects a stated intent to reinforce security for oil sites”, the bulletin stated, without providing further details.

26.03.25 RFI: Niger: le général Abdourahamane Tiani est officiellement investi président pour cinq ans renouvelables. Deux ordonnances portant sur la dissolution des partis politiques au Niger et sur l'amnistie de prisonniers politiques et militaires ont été signées par le général Abdourahamane Tiani, qui a insisté sur la nécessité d'une réconciliation nationale.

22.03.25 AJE: Niger declares three days of mourning after mosque attack kills 44: The victims were killed in a “savage” armed assault in the Fambita quarter of the rural border town of Kokorou, the interior ministry said in a statement broadcast on state television on Friday.

03.03.25 DW: Au Niger, des syndicats désavouent les militaires: Au Niger, cette proposition des militaires des prélèvements sur les salaires au profit du Fonds de solidarité pour la sauvegarde de la patrie (FSSP) survient après l'imposition d'un prélèvement de 10 FCFA, soit 0,015 Euro sur l’achat de crédit téléphonique et les souscriptions aux forfaits internet chez les opérateurs de téléphonie mobile.

Senegal

26.03.25 Reuters: IMF says 'urgent reforms' needed to address Senegal's debt woes: The International Monetary Fund on Wednesday called for Senegal to streamline tax exemptions and phase out costly energy subsidies as part of "urgent reforms" after an audit revealed misreporting of economic data.
The IMF suspended its existing $1.8 billion credit facility to the Western African nation pending a review of state finances, which confirmed last month that the debt and budget deficit were much wider than former President Macky Sall's administration reported.

12.03.25 RFI: À Dakar, le Parlement autorise le président à ratifier une convention judiciaire entre Sénégal et Maroc: Comme le stipule les 24 articles qui composent cette convention, le texte sert à encadrer le transfert et l’assistance consulaire aux détenus. Pour Amadou Ba, député du Pastef, avec près de 300 détenus sénégalais au Maroc et une communauté de 200 000 personnes il fallait combler ce vide juridique : « Il y a eu un afflux quand même. On a eu des remontées de beaucoup de Sénégalais qui partaient pour l'immigration qui se sont retrouvés dans les prisons, ou, en tout cas entre les mains de la justice marocaine. Et c'était très difficile pour les consuls de travailler sans un cadre juridique approprié. Donc aujourd'hui, on a ce cadre juridique et ça va permettre de mieux assister les Sénégalais. »

05.03.25 JA: Sénégal : un nouveau collectif dénonce le licenciement de milliers de salariés du secteur public: Les autorités sont confrontées depuis plusieurs semaines à une fronde sociale alors que la situation économique et celle des finances publiques se détériorent

Togo

17.03.24 Sahel Inteligence: Sahel: Togo seeks to join the Sahel States Alliance: In his remarks, Mr. Dussey emphasized that this strategic move could strengthen regional cooperation while providing direct access to the sea for the member countries. He also stated that this initiative marks a turning point in African policy, although he did not provide details on the official steps that need to be taken to actualize this intention.
As of now, AES members have not responded to this announcement. It is important to note that Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé had been appointed by the West African States Economic Community (ECOWAS) summit to serve as a mediator between AES and ECOWAS.

Sub Saharan Africa

DRC

20.03.25 AJE: M23 rebels capture key town of Walikale in eastern DR Congo: The rebels entered the mining hub in North Kivu province on Wednesday, a day after DRC President Felix Tshisekedi and his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame called for an immediate ceasefire after meeting in Qatar’s capital Doha.

Also see 20.03.25 NYT: Wealth and Warfare Empower a Rwanda-Backed Militant Group in Congo: Rare-earth minerals critical for smartphone manufacturing. Lucrative trafficking routes and dizzying stockpiles of weapons. The lives of millions of people. All are now under the control of the M23 militia and its powerful backer, Rwanda; Africa Report 18.03.25: EU sanctions Rwandan generals on eve of crucial diplomatic week; taz 17.03.25: Kongo auf verlorenem Posten: Nach Südafrikas Abzugsbeschluss hilft nur noch Burundi Kongos Armee gegen die von Ruanda unterstützten M23-Rebellen – eine explosive Konstellation. NYT 02.03.25: Why Congo’s Vast Army Is Struggling to Fight a Far Smaller Militia: Its soldiers are underpaid and underarmed. Its ranks are riddled with factions pursuing their own interests. And successive presidents are said to have kept it weak for fear of a coup; FP 03.03.25: How Far Will Rwanda Go in Congo?: If the M23 and its Rwandan backers get their way, a country already hosting seven million displaced people could be engulfed in a destabilizing war—its third since the late 1990s. Perhaps equally important, by allowing Rwanda, which has received billions of dollars of backing from Europe, the United States, the World Bank, and the IMF, to effectively appropriate part of an adjacent state, the West risks contributing to the further breakdown of one of the most crucial principles upholding international order.
Many commentators now point to a speech Kagame made during an official visit to Benin in April 2023 as a key declaration of intent. “The borders that were drawn during colonial times had our countries divided,” he asserted. “A big part of Rwanda was left outside, in eastern Congo, in southwestern Uganda . . . this is a fact. It is a fact of history. . . . And these people have been denied their rights.” This is a line that has since been echoed by Rwandan intellectuals, providing a historical rationale for the “Greater Rwanda” that may now be emerging in eastern Congo.

Kenya

04.03.25 AJE: ‘Very worrying’: Fear stalks Kenya as dozens of government critics abducted: Rights groups blame ‘state agents’ for abductions of more than 80 people since June 2024, with dozens still missing.

Nigeria

21.03.25 IPG: Niger Delta Blues: Hinter dem Rückzug der Ölriesen steckt ein Kalkül: die Flucht vor der Haftung für massive Umwelt- und Gesundheitsschäden.

Also see Africa Report 14.03.24: Nigeria: Shell warns of violence in Rivers after Wike threatens impeachment: The feud between two the current governor and the former governor in Nigeria’s oil-rich Rivers State has prompted threats by ethnic groups to hijack oil facilities. Shell has cautioned staff to be on the alert.

Tanzania

10.03.25 taz: Massai und VW: Die Maasai in Tansania sollen ihre Rinderherden für 40 Jahre regelmäßig von einer Weide auf die andere treiben. VW will so Kohlenstoff-Emissionen wettmachen.

West Asia

Israel, Gaza and Palestine

26.03.25 +972: Weaponizing starvation, Israel seeks full control over Gaza aid distribution: The acute hunger crisis in the Strip is part of a deliberate Israeli strategy to cripple Hamas’ governance capabilities and banish humanitarian groups.

25.03.25 NYT: In Rare Protest, Gazans Voice Frustration With Hamas: One Gazan who attended the rally said the protesters wanted Hamas to end the war and leave the enclave.

Also see NYT 27.03.25: Gazans Demand End to 18 Years of Hamas Rule

20.03.25 GFP: Bompen und Deportationspläne: Die Luftangriffe, bei deren erster Welle am Dienstag bereits 400 Menschen zu Tode kamen – so viele an einem Tag wie seit 2023 nicht mehr –, folgten dabei auf die seit dem 2. März andauernde, bis heute fortgesetzte Blockade des Gazastreifens für sämtliche Hilfslieferungen

14.03.25 AJE: US, Israel want to displace Palestinians from Gaza to East Africa: Report: The United States and Israel have discussed with three East African governments the forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza to Sudan, Somalia and its breakaway region of Somaliland, according to US and Israeli officials quoted by The Associated Press news agency.

13.03.25 LMD: Gaza – die alte Fantasie von der Vertreibung: Donald Trumps wahnwitziger Plan, die Be­woh­ne­r:in­nen des Küstenstreifens nach Ägypten und Jordanien „umzusiedeln“, trifft in Israel auf viel Zustimmung. Dort hat der Traum vom Verschwinden Gazas eine lange Geschichte, die bis ins Jahr 1949 zurückreicht.

10.03.25 B’Tselem: Gaza Doctrine: The West Bank is Under Fire: On 19 January 2025, once the ceasefire in Gaza went into effect, the Israeli government declared it was adding the demand for "increased offensive activity" in the West Bank to its official list of "war objectives". The addition was merely a formal affirmation of Israel’s treatment of the West Bank since 7 October 2023 as another front in the all-out war declared on the Palestinians since the Hamas attack.

10.03.25 AJE: What does Israel cutting off Gaza’s electricity mean?: After blocking all aid entering the battered enclave, Israel has now announced it will stop electricity to Gaza.

Also see AJE 11.03.25: UNRWA chief warns of ‘deepening hunger’ in Gaza as Israel blocks all food

06.03.25 +972: Israel developing ChatGPT-like tool that weaponizes surveillance of Palestinians: The new model under development by the Israeli army is being fed vast amounts of intelligence collected on the everyday lives of Palestinians living under occupation.
The existence of Unit 8200’s LLM was confirmed to +972, Local Call, and the Guardian by three Israeli security sources with knowledge of its development.

04.03.25 NYT: Israel Strikes Syria Again as Tensions Rise: The latest attacks came a week after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel demanded the demilitarization of much of southern Syria, stoking fears of conflict with the country’s new leadership.

Jordan

25.03.25 FP: Jordan’s Looming Crisis The effect of the freezes was particularly catastrophic for Jordan; no country in the Middle East has relied more on USAID or UNRWA. The gutting of USAID will likely end hundreds of different aid and development projects in Jordan that support such essential services as public health, education, water access, local government, small businesses, and schools. It will also cripple the network of NGOs and U.S.-aid-linked state institutions that employs tens of thousands of Jordanians.

KSA

16.03.25 NYT: Why Maids Keep Dying in Saudi Arabia: East African leaders and Saudi royals are among those profiting off a lucrative, deadly trade in domestic workers. Undeterred, Kenya’s president, William Ruto, says he wants to send up to half a million workers to Saudi Arabia in the coming years. One of his top advisers, Moses Kuria, has owned a staffing agency.

Pakistan

31.03.25 NYT: Uncertainty Torments Afghan Refugees Facing Deportation from Pakistan: Monday marks the deadline for Afghans sheltering in Pakistan to leave the country, with the prospect of a dangerous future in Taliban-led Afghanistan ahead. In February, Pakistan announced its plans to repatriate Afghans awaiting resettlement by March 31, along with 800,000 Pakistan-issued Afghan Citizenship Card holders and an unknown number of undocumented Afghan migrants.

Syria

24.03.25 AJE: Lebanon-Syria border clashes reflect new realities on the ground: Clashes along the Lebanon-Syria border drew armies, threaten Damascus and Beirut’s state-building projects. The border is rugged terrain, paired with the historical absence of the Lebanese state, made it ripe for smuggling – particularly in the area where the clashes took place.

09.03.25 Guardian: More than 1,000 people killed in two days of clashes in Syria, war monitor says: More than 1,000 people, including 745 civilians, were killed in the two days of clashes between Syrian security forces and fighters loyal to the former Assad regime and ensuing revenge killings, a war monitor has said, one of the highest death tolls in Syria since 2011.

Also see taz 09.03.25: Blutige Unruhen um Latakia

10.03.25 Guardian: Syrian government reaches deal with Kurdish-led SDF to integrate north-east region: The deal, which is to be carried out by year’s end, will place all public institutions in north-east Syria – including borders, airports and oilfields – under Syrian government control.

Turkey

22.03.25 taz: Die Türkei in Aufruhr: Nach der Festnahme des Istanbuler Bürgermeisters İmamoğlu gehen Tausende auf die Straße. Sie kritisieren den „Putsch gegen den Willen des Volkes“.

Also see taz 29.03.25: Machtdemonstration der türkischen Zivilgesellschaft; FP 21.03.25: Turkey Is Now a Full-Blown Autocracy: Just like Putin’s, Erdogan’s repression has intensified as his popularity has waned. Key constituencies, including Turkey’s youth, are growing disillusioned. Frustrated by Erdogan’s increasingly authoritarian policies and a lack of economic opportunity, many young Turks are contemplating emigration. A nationalist backlash against the government’s policies that allow millions of Syrian refugees to live in Turkey is growing. Turkey’s economy is deeply dependent on foreign investment. Investors are already fleeing as the county grows more authoritarian, and a slide into full autocracy will hardly bring them back.; taz 20.03.25: Wie Erdoğan an der Macht bleiben will: Can Dündar im Gespräch über Erdoğans Versuche, seine Macht zu zementieren und die fragwürdigen neuen Machthaber in Syrien

12.03.25 AJE: Analysis: Call to disband PKK reshapes Turkiye, Syria power dynamics: Ocalan’s call comes as value of armed fight diminishes, and Kurdish political participation grew – will this continue?

07.03.25 Infomigrants: La Turquie construit un mur à la frontière grecque: Bientôt un nouveau mur aux frontières de l’Europe. Celui-ci se déploiera le long de la frontière entre la Grèce et la Turquie, afin de prévenir les entrées irrégulières de migrants dans l'Union européenne (UE), a annoncé mardi 4 mars le gouverneur de la province turque d'Edirne, Yunus Sezer. "Il est prévu de construire dans un premier temps 8,5 kilomètres cette année", a-t-il précisé.
Le responsable a ajouté que d'autres portions de ce mur devraient être érigées ultérieurement le long de la frontière terrestre entre la Turquie et la Grèce, longue de quelque 200 kilomètres et presque intégralement formée par le fleuve Evros.
La construction de ce mur s’inscrit dans le cadre de l’accord signé en 2016 entre l'Union européenne et la Turquie pour que le pays garde les exilés sur son sol. La Turquie a par ailleurs renforcé ses frontières avec l’Iran et la Syrie. Des murs d'une longueur totale de plus de 1000 km séparent le pays de ses voisins.
D’après Hamit Bozarslan, directeur d'études à l'École des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales (EHESS) et spécialiste de la Turquie, avec la construction de ce nouveau mur à la frontière grecque, Recep Tayyip Erdogan "souhaite faire un geste à l'égard de l'Europe".

Yemen

19.03.25 AJE: Trump warns Yemen’s Houthis will be ‘completely annihilated’: “Tremendous damage has been inflicted upon the Houthi barbarians, and watch how it will get progressively worse — It’s not even a fair fight, and never will be,” Trump wrote in a social media post. “They will be completely annihilated!”

07.03.25 AJE: Two dead, 186 missing after four boats sink off Yemen and Djibouti: UN: Four boats carrying migrants from Africa have capsized in waters off Yemen and Djibouti, leaving at least two people dead and 186 missing, according to the United Nations migration agency.

Europe

Germany

14.03.25 Infomigrants: En Allemagne, les centres d'expulsion se multiplient: Un deuxième centre d'expulsion pour les migrants "dublinés" a ouvert ses portes en Allemagne près de la frontière polonaise le 1er mars 2025. Ces centres visent à accélérer le transfert des demandeurs d'asile déboutés. Le nouveau centre d'expulsion a officiellement été inauguré le 1er mars à Eisenhüttenstadt, dans la région du Brandebourg, au nord-est de l’Allemagne près de la frontière avec la Pologne. Le premier centre, ouvert à Hambourg, aurait déjà permis d’alléger les charges administratives. Un troisième centre doit ouvrir à Brême
En 2024, l'Allemagne a présenté près de 75 000 demandes de transfert de demandeurs d'asile vers des pays de l'UE, dont environ 44 000 ont été approuvées. Pourtant, seules quelque 5 740 personnes ont été effectivement expulsées.

13.03.25 DLF: Grenzkontrollen wegen irregulärer Migration: Polizeibeauftragter Grötsch registriert Anstieg bei Racial Profiling: Der Polizeibeauftragte des Bundes, Grötsch, sagte der dpa, die Zahl der Eingaben habe stark zugenommen. Grötsch führte aus, es könne nicht sein, dass Berufspendler beklagten, bei zehn von zwölf Fahrten über die Grenze nur kontrolliert zu werden, weil sie schwarz seien.

Greece

24.03.25 taz: Die Türkei ist kein sicherer Drittstaat: Der oberste Gerichtshof Griechenlands hat entschieden: Migranten dürfen nicht mehr in die Türkei zurückgeführt werden.

Italy

28.03.25 Il Post: Il governo sta cercando di rendere utilizzabili i centri in Albania: La novità è che uno dei due verrà usato come un qualsiasi CPR italiano per i migranti: resterà però in gran parte inutilizzato, come l'altro

27.03.25 Guardian: Italian government approved use of spyware on members of refugee NGO, MPs told: National security committee is investigating whether secret services breached law by using surveillance tool to monitor activists and journalists

25.03.25 Infomigrants: Italy to dismantle migrant tent city in Gioia Tauro: The plan includes the dismantling of the tent city hosting migrants who are employed as seasonal agricultural field laborers in the Gioia Tauro Plane. The Municipality's administration communicated this news.

24.03.25 Infomigrants: Fewer migrants in Ventimiglia on Italian-French border, report: The number of migrants in the Italian city of Ventimiglia is dropping but the hardships they are experiencing are increasing, according to a report presented on March 20 by associations providing assistance to migrants in the border area between Italy and France.

Poland

14.03.25 Infomigrants: La Pologne entérine sa loi limitant le droit d'asile: Proposée par le gouvernement polonais avant d'être validée par la Commission européenne, le texte de loi restreignant le droit d'asile en Pologne vient d'être adopté, jeudi 13 mars, par le Sénat. Il s'agissait de la dernière étape du parcours législatif de ce texte extrêmement controversé. Les ONG pointent sa contradiction avec le droit européen et international qui protège les personnes en quête de protection.

European Union

29.03.25 AJE: It’s not just Trump, the EU is also waging an anti-migration crusade: The European Union’s border control policies may not be as visible as Trump’s but they are just as brutal. A view from Zaghreb and Sarajevo. Balkan countries that have to fulfill certain criteria to become part of the EU, through the EU accession process, are effectively being turned into a border zone for the EU. Unlike EU member states, Balkan candidate states had no say in shaping this pact, yet they are forced to implement it and abide by what can only be described as colonial blackmail.

11.03.25 Euractiv: ‘Return hubs’ possible under new EU rules: The EU's new return rules – the so-called "missing piece" of the asylum and migration system – are set to be unveiled during Parliament's plenary session in Strasbourg today. The new legislation will replace the existing directive, which has been in place since 2008.
The new text, which as Euractiv previously reported is set to be a regulation, will be directly applicable and binding in all member states, bypassing the need for national implementation.

04.03.25 taz: Kaum noch Wege nach Europa: Die Zahl der Asyl-Erstanträge in der Europäischen Union geht 2024 um 11 Prozent zurück. Das liegt auch an Abschottung weit außerhalb der EU-Grenzen.

Reports and Long Reads

March 2025 Civil MRCC: ECHOES Issue 16, March 2025 – Commemor’Action! With Analysis on the Atlantic Route and the new Libya-Crete Route.
Since the beginning of 2025:
• 5,877 people arrived to Italy and Malta by sea, many of whom arrived
autonomously (UNHCR figures up to February 23)
• 1,025 people were rescued by the civil fleet from more than 20 boats in
distress (CMRCC figure up to February 26).
• 3,855 people were pushed back to Libya after they were intercepted by the
EU-supported so-called Libyan Coast Guard (IOM figure up to February 15).
• 101 people have been reported dead or missing on the Central
Mediterranean Route (IOM figure up to February 15).

27.03.25 Statewatch: European support for Egypt: billions of euros for a dictatorial “partner” in migration control: This article examines the EU’s growing support for Egyptian authorities and policies dealing with migration, asylum and borders. Then, it analyses relevant Egyptian legislation, some of which has been drafted with support from the EU. The third section looks at how Egypt’s position as a country of origin and transit, and as a host country, makes it strategically important to the EU.

27.03.25 TNH: An RSF atrocity, a mass evacuation, and another side to mutual aid in Sudan: In late last year, after weeks of painstaking effort, volunteers raised some $180,000 to evacuate vast numbers of people from Al Jazirah. They drove them to safer states across Sudan and provided support wherever possible at their destinations.

19.03.2025 MMC: How migration & smuggling across the Mediterranean, the Atlantic & the English Channel adapt to changing policies: Despite an overall downturn in arrivals between 2023 and 2024, demand for irregular migration remains strong. As crossings on one route decline others surge or re-emerge
Smuggling networks adapt—and even thrive—under restrictions always finding ways to meet new demand.
Hardline policies are making migration more dangerous, while EU-backed enforcement in transit countries is forcing movement—even for those who didn’t plan to continue.

18.03.254 Oxfam: Brutal Barriers: Pushbacks, violence and the violation of human rights on the Poland-Belarus border: This report has been produced in partnership between Oxfam and Egala, a grassroots organization providing humanitarian aid, medical support and legal assistance to people on the move at the Poland–Belarus border. It collects extensive existing evidence, testimonies from Egala volunteers and workers on the ground, and the voices of people seeking protection, in order to document the human consequences of restrictive, illegal and inhumane policies at this border.

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