Met @kasperhoffmann.bsky.social en @judithverweijen.bsky.social schreef ik een stuk over de wankele fundamenten van Trump's streven naar een nieuw Pax Americana in Congo. Wie denkt dat de door de VS gefaciliteerde akkoorden vrede zullen brengen, komt alvast bedrogen uit. www.mo.be/opinie/Trump...

Open brief aan de VRT: ‘Jullie hanteren een terminologie die de oorlogstaal normaliseert en banaliseert’

New ILS Report - More than 20 years after the adoption of the Comprehensive and Inclusive Agreement (CIA), war once again threatens regime stability in the DRC. As calls for peace negotiations multiply, it is necessary to take a critical look at the legacy of this power-sharing agreement.

Nouveau rapport ILS - Plus que 20 ans après l'adoption d’accord global et inclusif (AGI), la guerre menace à nouveau la stabilité du régime en RDC. Alors que les appels à négocier la paix se multiplient il est nécessaire de porter un regard critique sur l'héritage de cet accord de partage de pouvoir

The Dutch government decided to stop the regional program for the Great Lakes region. A program that mostly funded important projects in the east of the DR Congo. At a time that east Congo needs our attention most - and which requires a regional approach #DRC

Good morning. The #Netherlands is cutting its #DevelopmentAid by 2.4 billion. 50% cut to #Unicef. #WomensRights, #GenderEquality, #Education, #Climate, you name it. Gone. As a country, we are so wealthy, and yet...We keep cutting taxes for the rich. #Nederland nos.nl/artikel/2556...

De Amerikaanse socioloog Musa al-Gharbi houdt de universitaire elite een genadeloze spiegel voor in zijn boek 'We Have Never Been Woke'. Over politieke correctheid en het gevecht om schaarse eliteposities.

A next phase in the further regional escalation of the conflict. While M23 asks for Burundian troops to leave Congo, Ugandan voices are building a narrative to take action in Ituri

#RDC #Ouganda Message du fils de #Museveni dont les troupes se déploient en #Ituri « Je donne exactement 24 heures à toutes les forces de #Bunia pour rendre leurs armes ! S'ils ne le font pas, nous les considérerons comme des ennemis et les attaquerons. »

These African countries will be hit hardest by Trump’s USAID cuts www.semafor.com/article/02/1...

While we all look at M23 conflict, violent attacks continue to happen in Ituri which are unrelated to M23 and have largely stayed under the radar.

With @judithverweijen.bsky.social I wrote this comment on why the Congo crisis extends beyonds 'conflict minerals'. (version française en dessous de la version angles) www.egmontinstitute.be/congo-crisis...

Het overlijden van “historicus van opleiding, socioloog van beroep en wetenschappelijk activist” Stephen Bouquin dompelt de Belgische linkerzijde in rouw. "Zijn werk en engagement kunnen ons veel leren over de rol van intellectuelen in de sociale strijd", schrijft @vschelti.bsky.social.

With @judithverweijen.bsky.social I wrote a background piece to the current crisis in DRC. We argue that it cannot be reduced to a quest for resources.

De zucht van Rwanda naar Congolese mineralen als hoofdfactor zien van de recente inval in Oost-Congo, is te kort door de bocht, schrijven Judith Verweijen (Universiteit Utrecht) en Koen Vlassenroot (UGent) in een gezamenlijk opiniestuk.

In moments like these you can always count on Kash

De bezorgdheid is terecht. Maar laten we deze baseren op een accurate analyse.

With the arrival of the #M23 in the city of Goma, the Congo crisis has entered a next stage and level of intensification. Many wonder why this could happen. In an analysis written a few months ago @ethuin.bsky.social and I provide some background.

Important piece on why international response on current crisis around Goma is slow, limited and inaccurate

🔴🇨🇩#RDC : #Goma au bord du précipice. Analyse et perspectives à lire sur 👉 afrikarabia.com/wordpress/wp...

Devant le Conseil de sécurité de l'#ONU, la #RDC demande : ▶️La fin des hostilités par le #Rwanda ▶️Le retrait des troupes rwandaises ▶️Des sanctions ciblées contre les décideurs militaires et politiques rwandais ▶️Un embargo sur les minerais étiquetés Rwanda

🔴#RDC La réunion du #Conseil de sécurité de l'#ONU 🇺🇳sur la situation en RDC a été avancée à ce dimanche 26 janvier à 16h (heure de Kinshasa et Paris).

Confirmation from the South African National Defence Force that nine South African soldiers have been killed in intense fighting against M23 over the past few days, and claiming that the group’s advance toward Goma has been halted.

⚠️ Une nouvelle fuite des négociations gouvernementales révèle que l'Arizona envisage de couper 25% des budgets de la coopération au #développement ! 🚨 Une telle décision témoignerait d’une logique court-termiste, peu stratégique et contre-productive. Notre communiqué👉 tinyurl.com/yrxkar23 #Arizona

Now out from behind the paywall: @maricohen.bsky.social goes long on the crisis facing the field of genocide studies as institutions that emerged from the study of the Holocaust grapple with—or ignore—genocide in Gaza. jewishcurrents.org/can-genocide...

Maxime Ricard, Julien Antouly and I have a new paper out. It tells the story of France's retreat from the Sahel through the lens of the imaginaries at work among French decision-makers (with a historical perspective) https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14650045.2024.2446437

We just launched the website of our ERC project CATTLEFRONTIERS. Have a look at www.cattlefrontiers.eu With 5 historians at different career levels and supporting staff, we will be studying the transformations of cattle production in (post)colonial Africa until well into 2028...

The Sub-Saharan Security Review open.substack.com/pub/theafric...

Mark your calendars! We're delighted to announce our next Spring Symposium on April 4 and 5! Join us for a stimulating discussion with leading speakers on identity and ideology in the Sahelian jihads. sahelresearch.africa.ufl.edu/announcement...

#Poland, what are you doing?!?!? If this shit continues, everything will crumble...The entire #InternationalJustice system will go down the drain. If enough states undermine it, it's gone. Then we won't have anything. #Accountability #Justice #ICC apnews.com/article/pola... #ICC

Sights, sounds and scans of the year that was: A wrap-up of 2024 in African film, music and literature

At this point, Israel is bombing what has already been bombed, destroying what has already been destroyed, displacing those who have already been displaced—often multiple times—and killing those who have lost everything and are on the brink of death..

🔎🔎CONFLICT RESEARCH GROUP 2024 REVIEW ( 🧵 a thread) Through the Conflict Research Group Book Launch Series, we have highlighted several recently published books in 2024. These books deepen our understanding of critical issues, contexts, and perspectives on conflicts worldwide. check below 🔗👇🏻

This is wild. Sudan is the next level of globalised warfare, bizarre alliances, sheer predation etc. One thing is sure: Sudanese people pay an exorbitant price

Out now: ILS report no. 24, which I wrote with the fantastic Eric Batumike. In this report we examine the political economy of the Kaziba Chiefdom in South Kivu, DRCongo. www.gicnetwork.be/the-politica...

Nouvelle publication: www.gicnetwork.be/leconomie-po... Ce rapport sur l’économie politique de la chefferie de Bukumu.

Let’s talk about a little-discussed issue in science funding: the rise of consultants who “help” researchers win grants. Spoiler: they add noise, bias the process, and waste public money meant for actual research. Here’s why this matters. (1/n)

ONGOING: CRG team is participating in the 67th Annual Meeting of the African Studies Association (ASA), taking place in Chicago, IL, Dec. 12–14, 2024. We are presenting the following 👇🏻 To know more about the conference,click👉🏻https://africanstudies.org/annual-meetings/ #Africa #globalafrica

Just out: ILS report no. 23 which analyses the Bukumu Chiefdom in eastern DRC ! It looks at the different border dynamics, processes of urbanization, and associated tensions around identity and authority that shape the chiefdom’s political economy.

🚨🔐💻OPEN-ACCESS CO-AUTHORED PUBLICATION ON FEMINISM, KNOWLEDGE PRODUCTION, AND RESEARCH ETHICS! 📜 by CRG Senior Staff @drmmartind.bsky.social "Doing Feminist Research on Conflict, Violence, and Peace: Ethical and Methodological Dilemmas." To access, click 👉🏻 journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

“I think it’s an extremely worrisome time for universities, extremely so,” said L. Rafael Reif, the president emeritus of MIT. www.washingtonpost.com/education/20...

‘At a more fundamental level, stabilisation missions address the symptoms rather than the causes of insecurity – avoiding exploring the structural issues that can give rise to conflict.’ Good backgrounder on the new UN- African led peacebuilding arrangement

All Protocol Observed There are only 10 people at The Continent and we want to be the most reliable source of African news for anyone, anywhere. For that, we need your help. Please fill out our reader survey. Kidogo kidogo we’ll get this right 👇

It took me way too long, but my book 'Fractured Pasts in Lake Kivu's Borderlands' will finally be out next year with CUP. You can preorder it here. www.cambridge.org/core/books/f... And it's hard to believe, but wonderful scholars called it 'bold', 'provocative', 'original' and 'essential reading'.

ECOWAS is at a critical juncture. Without a policy change, the departure of Mali, Burkina Faso & Niger will be official on 28 Jan. 🇲🇱🇳🇪🇧🇫 @crisisgroup.org's new piece analyses these divorce proceedings and provides recs on the withdrawal process. ⤵️ www.crisisgroup.org/africa/sahel...

If Bluesky is to replace X for news, global coverage is key. There are consequential events happening in Syria, Ukraine, Georgia, Sudan & Gaza right now. This pack includes reporters on the ground there & analysts. Pls consider following these to share their reporting & build Bluesky's news value

Excellent list of people to follow here on Bluesky