Special Reports

Civil society activists in South Sudan are angry over an opinion piece apparently penned by President Salva Kiir and First Vice President Riek Machar in Tuesday's edition of The New York Times. In the piece, Kiir and Machar call for a truth and reconciliation commission instead of a hybrid court, as stipulated in the August peace agreement. Activists said the two leaders are trying to eliminate the formation of a fair court and allow those who committed atrocities during Sout

South Sudan, which became independent in 2011, has halted its civil war by putting the leaders of both sides together in a transitional government meant to keep the country functioning ahead of elections in two years. President Salva Kiir, a member of the Dinka tribe, coexists with First Vice President Riek Machar, a member of the Nuer tribe, as they did during South Sudan's first two years following its independence. And for now, the peace that ended more than two years of

JUBA—Two weeks after the former warring parties in South Sudan's conflict formed the Transitional Government of National Unity, cease-fire monitors say President Salva Kiir's forces are still not cooperating with security monitors in implementing security arrangements, as set forth in the peace agreement. Major General Molla Hailemariam, who chairs the Ceasefire Transitional and Security Arrangements Monitoring Mechanism (CTSAMM), said Thursday that monitors still face resist

A photographer shows a civil war-torn country that “resists and rises again.” The sunbathed half-mile stretch of road that links the Aden Adde International Airport and the Peace Hotel in Mogadishu, once named by TIME the “best hotel in hell,” is interrupted by at least seven security checkpoints: four at the airport, sporting metal detectors and concrete barriers, and three at the hotel – such are the measures taken to prevent Al-Shabaab’s assaults threatening Mogadishu ever

The government of South Sudan has formed a preparatory committee that will be tasked to receive the armed opposition’s advance team to Juba. The country’s vice president, James Wani Igga issued an administrative order for the formation of the preparatory committee, the state-ownedSSTV announced Wednesday. Finance minister, David Deng Athorbei heads the preparatory and reception committee and will be assisted by the deputy minister of foreign affairs, Peter Bashir Gbandi. Seve

As international forces scrambled to provide security for the visit of Pope Francis to the Central African Republic (CAR) over the weekend, local and international actors have called for the rearmament of the country’s armed forces following rising sectarian violence. However, such a move is fraught with danger, including threats by certain ex-Séléka factions to invade the capital Bangui should it occur. CAR’s recent wave of sectarian violence followed a civil war that erupte

Burundi is back in the spotlight of the world’s media and the agenda of the United Nations Security Council. As recently as two years ago, the country was considered a success story in peacebuilding circles, but now the news is firmly of a negative variety. The UN is trying to prevent a new civil war in a region still haunted by the Rwandan genocide. How did success so quickly turn to failure? Following the re-election of President Nkurunziza for a contentious third term in J

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is expected to soon roll out a plan of action to improve multilateral efforts on countering violent extremism (CVE), or what the UN increasingly calls “preventing” violent extremism. As the international community grapples with an ever more complex terrorist threat, the discipline has provided an effective and sustainable strategy for those on the frontline of policy responses. Understanding how the UN is best positioned to advance

The voluntary withdrawal of Ugandan troops from South Sudan is a demonstration of the government’s commitment to fully implement the peace agreement signed between President Salva Kiir and former vice president Riek Machar, according to presidential spokesman Ateny Wek Ateny. He says the pullout of troops from the Uganda People’s Defense Force (UPDF) from South Sudan will be completed within the first week in November. The withdrawal was a key demand of rebels loyal to for

Seeing the economic vitality in Côte d’Ivoire, you could almost forget that this country was ever embroiled in a vicious conflict with undercurrents of xenophobia and ethnic hate. Yet when Alassane Ouattara—the runaway favorite to win a second term in this coming weekend’s presidential election—took office in May 2011, it was after five months of post-election violence in which 3,000 people had died, and Côte d’Ivoire was still suffering the aftermath of its 2002-03 civil war