AFRICOM

China is aggressively seeking to establish an Atlantic naval base in Africa that can service submarines and aircraft carriers, Gen. Stephen Townsend, chief of the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), warned Thursday.

Islamic State jihadis have made inroads with Islamic terrorists in the Democratic Republic of Congo as the central African country reels from a worsening Ebola virus outbreak, which has already infected and killed hundreds.

U.S. military forces in Africa are reportedly behind 36 offensives in various countries ranging from counterterrorism to psychological operations that are, or until recently, were, ongoing against jihadi groups.

Russia is intensifying its military presence and influence in Africa by “increasing arms sales, security agreements, and training programs for unstable countries or autocratic leaders,” a move that is causing concern in the West, the New York Times confirms.

American military airstrikes killed nearly 60 jihadis from the al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabaab terrorist group in Somalia over the last three days, U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) announced.

The Pentagon on Thursday released its final report on the ambush in Niger that killed four U.S. troops on October 4, 2017. The report cited “systemic issues” including insufficient training and confusion about mission objectives, specifically the decision by the team to pursue a high-value Islamic State target without obtaining proper command approval.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration has reportedly carried out America’s first ever drone strikes targeting al-Qaeda terrorists in jihadi breeding ground Libya last weekend, suggesting a possible expansion of the United States mission in the war-ravaged nation.

WASHINGTON, DC — The American armed forces are maintaining surveillance over “Chinese encroachment and emergent military presence” in the African country of Djibouti, home to Beijing’s first overseas naval base, the top U.S. commander in the continent told lawmakers.

Deteriorating security conditions in Africa fueled by jihadist groups are forcing U.S. troops to expand their military footprint with “limited resources,” placing their lives in peril, the Military Times reported this week.

The number of Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL)-linked jihadists in northern Somalia is “growing significantly in strength,” reaching up to 200 terrorists already this year, the United Nations reported a few days after U.S. airstrikes targeted the terrorist group for the first time in the African country.

Contents: Islamic State in Greater Sahara (ISGS) blamed for deaths of US troops in Niger; Jihadist ambush in Niger forces a review of military operations in Africa

The first publicly announced American airstrikes in Libya under U.S. President Donald Trump targeted a camp operated by the renascent Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) branch in the country, killing 17 terrorists and destroying three vehicles, revealed the Pentagon Monday.

The U.S. military is sending “dozens” of additional troops to Somalia for training with the Somali National Army and African Union peacekeepers.

The Africa-based jihadist groups Boko Haram and al-Shabaab have intensified their efforts against U.S. interests in response to increasing American military pressure against their operations approved by President Donald Trump.

Russia has provided assistance to two rivals in Libya — the prime minister of the United Nations-recognized government in Tripoli and the leader of a military faction that opposes him — in an effort to deepen military operations inside the North African country.

The top U.S. military commander in the Africa region has asked the Trump White House for more authority to go after al-Qaeda’s affiliate in Somalia, he said recently.

Moscow has recently dispatched an estimated 22-member special forces unit to a base in western Egypt on the country’s border with Libya, a move that can exacerbate the ongoing U.S. concerns about Russia’s interference there, reports Reuters.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Russia’s involvement in war-ravaged Libya “is very concerning,” the top American commander in Africa told the Senate Armed Services Committee.

The United States military in Africa has deployed 47 troops described by President Barack Obama as “equipped for combat” to protect American personnel and facilities in Juba, the capital of civil-war-ravaged South Sudan, the White House and U.S. Africa Command have announced.

TEL AVIV – Murdered Ambassador Chris Stevens had originally planned to arrive in Benghazi with Pentagon assistance and attempted to coordinate with the Defense Department in order to be housed on a protected coalition naval vessel for a period of time.