Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Rising tensions between Morocco and the Polisario Front come at the worst time for parties to the Western Sahara conflict.
Will the Mauritanian president manage to keep the country’s political transition on track by fending off his predecessor’s attempts to sneak back into office?
While a resource-rich economy might be in Mauritania’s grasp, the benefits are unlikely to be enjoyed by all.
The story of Mauritania’s transformation from the weakest link in the crisis-ridden Sahel to one of its most resilient is instructive.
A dynamic region amidst great change, the Maghreb is also home to the conservative, literalist interpretation of Islam known as Salafism, which has emerged as a major social and political force.
The G5 Sahel Joint Force shows that improvised security initiatives are becoming more common in Africa.
Jihadi violence in Mauritania has peaked and appears to have been contained through a mix of coercion and co-option. Yet the government’s triumphalism should be treated with care; Mauritania remains mired in corruption and poverty.
The current trend in U.S. and European governments to pay less attention to human rights issues in Arab countries did not develop overnight, and is unlikely to disappear quickly, as it is connected to local, regional, and global trends.
It has long been an axiom among the rulers of each Maghrebi country to brandish their rhetorical commitment to regional integration while often-shamelessly suffocating the principles and prospects of unity.
Please join Carnegie for a conference on the changing political, socioeconomic, and security dynamics within the Maghreb-Sahel region.
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