Many evolving disputes in north Africa and the Sahara fuse religious language and political impulse to powerful effect, says Stephen Ellis.
The rise of the controversial populist Julius Malema is shaking the ruling African National Congress, says Stephen Ellis.
The documentary evidence of Nelson Mandela’s membership of the South African Communist Party can contribute to a more truthful assessment of the country’s modern history, says the scholar who uncovered it, Stephen Ellis.
Africa’s economic dynamism is echoed in a radical shift of perception about the continent’s prospects. But these realities in turn are creating tough new tests for all involved, says Stephen Ellis.
A fusion of illicit money-making and radical politics is turning the big empty spaces of the western half of the Sahara into a profound security challenge, says Stephen Ellis.
The overthrow of Madagascar's elected president Marc Ravalomanana on 17 March 2009 is the latest setback in long-term efforts to establish political stability in the Indian Ocean island.
The signing of a peace agreement between contending forces in a neglected conflict is often the prelude to a brief spasm of attention from the worlds rulers and media,